Snow Angels and Starships
by J. ROOF
Summary: My first fan fic. Engineers need love too! Since no one ever writes romance for Scotty, I took it upon myself. Scotty and OFC based on an anonymous yeoman.No Slash, rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

This is my first fan fic so please bear with me.

I just wanted to give a special shout out to SL Watson and my friend Jo for beta reading, editing, and advice. Thank you ladies for all your help.

For Kelly and Marla, your encouragement and kindness inspire me. And for all the other ladies out there who are in love with Mr. Scott!

* * *

1.

As Yeoman Cathleen Mears stood over the stove melting the butter into the syrup and sugar mixture, the sweet fragrance filled the air, and she thought of the man she was making this special treat for while she worked.

It never occurred to her until recently to give the Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott much thought at all. That's not to say she didn't think of him as a pleasant, hardworking shipmate, but she had never looked at him as "dating material."

A few weeks prior, she and her female friends were playing drinking games together on one of the recreation decks when Yeoman Barrows started a round of "Who Would You Do?" The results were, as Commander Spock would say, fascinating.

"Okay, Rand, who would you do? Mr. Spock or Captain Kirk?" asked Yeoman Barrows, sipping on her fizzy yellow beer through a straw.

"Do I have to say why?" Rand sheepishly replied.

"Of course you have to say why, Janice," Yeoman Lawton grinned. "That's what makes it fun!"

"Well in that case.... it would have to be the Captain because he has the hottest ass!" She blushed and quickly took a sip of her drink, peering over the edge of her glass for their reaction. Laughter and giggling ensued, and they all took turns deciding who they would "do."

After Yeoman Lawton admitted she would do Ensign Chekov because she liked his sexy accent, and Yeoman Barrows confessed having had the hots for the ship's doctor for quite some time, it was Cathleen's turn. Smiling, Rand gave her a sideways glance "Okay, Cathy, who would you do?"

After thinking for a minute, she answered simply, "Mr. Scott." A brief silence fell as everyone looked at her in astonishment. "Well?" she started, "Why not? He's nice, he's very funny, he's smarter than people give him credit for, AND he's a good dancer. You know what they say about a guy who can dance."

"No, tell us." Barrows gave Lawton a nudge. "This should be good." Lawton nodded.

"Well, um....I have found in my own personal experiences that when a man has pretty good moves on the dance floor, he usually moves pretty good in the sack."

Tina cocked her head, trying to remember if she had ever seen Ensign Chekov on the dance floor. Yeoman Barrows, trying to stifle her laugh, choked on her beer.

"And anyways, Tonia," Cathleen continued defensively "Dr. McCoy is almost old enough to be your father!"

"Well, I suppose so." "But, I didn't know you had given it THAT much thought."

"I really hadn't, until now." Cathleen sat back in her chair and resigned herself to ridicule that never came.

Cathleen removed the pot from the stove and set it aside to cool. She realized now, weeks later, she wasn't as embarrassed as she had been when she admitted to her friends (and herself) that she had thought about Mr. Scott in a sexual way. She was even less embarrassed to actually be considering him as dating material.

In the weeks since the game, Cathleen noticed Mr. Scott was always nice to her, always willing to give her an extra hand with a repair, always engaging her in his familiar, jovial way. She had to admit he wasn't bad to look at of course, even when he was lost in his own thoughts or expressing a look of loneliness she knew only too well. He was a bit older than her, a little past forty.

_But fifteen years isn't that much of an age difference is it? _She pondered and smiled to herself, _well, yes it is, but it's a simple case of mind over matter. As long as he doesn't mind, it doesn't matter._

She finished the batter for the gingerbread and added it to the stewed apples already lining the bottom of the baking tin. The smell of cloves and ginger made the galley smell homey and she took a minute to close her eyes and inhaled.

She found the Scottish recipe for apple gingerbread on the computer, and it reminded her of her grandmother's apple stack cake. It had taken her a week to find all the ingredients she would need. The apples and simpler ingredients were easily available, but she'd had trouble finding anything remotely resembling something called golden syrup and Demerara sugar. When the head cook informed her that she could use honey or high fructose corn syrup in place of the golden syrup, and the sugar in question was basically raw cane sugar, of which the ship had plenty.

Of course, she had to bargain an extra cake for him in return for using the galley during her off hours. It was worth the extra effort to be allowed to use his galley. She enjoyed being in a kitchen again, even if it meant working around the bustle of a busy galley crew. It also felt good to do something nice for Mr. Scott. It was her grandmother who always said, "The way to man's heart is through his stomach." She also knew he would be worth the extra effort.

Cathleen carefully placed both cake pans in an oven, setting the timer to go off thirty minutes later. It would give her enough time to change her clothes and freshen her face so she would be more presentable for her delivery.

After she hurried back to the galley, she took the cakes out of the oven. While they cooled she made a pot of black tea. She turned the small, steaming cake out onto a plate and put everything on a tray, turning back only once to grab some napkins from the counter.

As she walked down to engineering, she mentally rehearsed what she would say to Mr. Scott. She had decided that she would tell him the treat was a gift of thanks for assisting her with the daunting task of calibrating the console of the Galileo earlier that week. She knew he would say it was his pleasure to help. She also knew that in reality he didn't have to help her as it was not part of his job -- that he could have gotten another crewmate to do so. She also knew that he had actually been the one to do most of the work, even though it was her assignment. But Cathleen had asked him, and he had taken the bait, and -- nervous as she was -- she was about to, as they say, reel him in.

The ride down to Mr. Scott's office in engineering was the longest turbo lift ride she had ever taken. Cathleen toyed with the idea a few times of cancelling the whole operation. Maybe she should just take the tray into one of the break rooms and let the guys have at it. But by the time she came back around to sticking to her plan, the lift doors opened and she was in engineering. She set the heavy tray down on a workbench to press the chime key.

Mr. Scott's voice from the other side said, "Enter," and she picked up the tray and stepped closer to allow the door to slide open.

Mr. Scott looked up from his monitor and an infectious smile spread across his face. "Well hello there, lassie, what can I do for ye this afternoon?"

She set the tray down in front of him. "It's not what you can do for me today, Mr. Scott. It's about what I have decided to do for you."

The Lieutenant Commander looked down at the tray and back up at her. "I don't understand."

Stepping around his desk, she turned his cup over and handed him a napkin. "Well, it's time for your usual tea break, and I thought I would make you something special for all the extra help you've given me lately."

"Oh, it was my pleasure lassie, but ye didn't have to go through all the trouble to make......"

"Mr. Scott," she interrupted before he could finish his protest, "you are no trouble at all. It was my pleasure as well. And anyway," she gave him a pat on his shoulder, "I wanted to spoil you a little."

As she made her way to the door, he asked if she would stay and share tea with him.

She looked back at him as the door slid open." No, but you can share dinner with me Friday night, say, nineteen-thirty?"

His eyes widened and he eyed the cake for only a moment before his lips turned up sweetly. "I'll be there."


	2. Chapter 2

2.

"Well, Cathleen, I have to say that was the best meal I've had since I've been on this ship," Mr. Scott declared as he laid down his napkin and pushed back his chair.

"Thank you. Better not let the galley crew hear you say that."

"I'm not afraid of them," he scoffed. "I get most of my meals from the food replicators." He narrowed his eyes at her, "What I want to know is, how did ye get Cook to let ye use his kitchen?"

She turned away from clearing the dishes off her small table and smiled. "I bribed him with a bottle of Romulan Ale."

"Aye, now there's a girl after my own heart," he said, chuckling.

The couple made their way over to a small sofa in her sitting area with a small bottle of brandy and a set of glasses.

As they sat down with their drinks and talked, she found engaging him in conversation was easy, and that was one of the things she always liked about him. He always seemed to fit in well with whoever he was with, enlisted or officers, and always gave that person his fullest attention. But right now she was the center of his attention, and she had to admit, she liked it.

They talked about work, they laughed and joked about their days at the academy, and he became relaxed enough to stretch his arm across the back of the sofa.

She poured herself a more brandy and asked, "Would you like another drink, Mr. Scott?"

"Lassie, if we're gonna spend time together outside of Engineering, you have got to stop callin' me Mr. Scott."

"What should I call you? Montgomery or Scotty?"

"Scotty will do, Cathleen," his voice softened. "And I will have that drink if ye please."

"Then Scotty it is, Mr. Scott," she said playfully.

He rolled his eyes and gave her an exasperated look that made her laugh.

A red alert sounded. They both froze and listened to make sure they were really hearing what they both knew they were hearing.

Scotty sighed heavily as he set his glass down on the coffee table, "We both better get down to engineering and find out what's goin' on."

"Damn it," she muttered and followed him into the corridor.

The ship lurched and she tripped over her own feet. Scotty grabbed her by the elbow to steady her and she ran to keep up with his quick strides.

Whatever had hit the ship hadn't knocked out the turbo lifts, and they stepped inside. The doors closed and he told the computer where to go. She turned to him quickly and said, "We forgot something."

"What's that?"

"Your goodnight kiss."

She leaned in, pecked him on the lips and stepped back. His dark eyes widened, a deep blush crept up his neck and spread over his face. An awkward silence fell between them on the ride to engineering. Cathleen wondered for a moment if she had just sabotaged herself by making such a move on him.

As soon as they walked into the chaos of Engineering, Scotty immediately went into command mode. First checking in with the bridge to find out what was going on, and then by assessing the damage done to the ship. He barked out his orders and she couldn't help but notice the change in his voice now, compared to the casual way he had sounded when they were alone in her quarters.

As alarms buzzed and lights flickered madly, the other senior engineering crew were delegating assignments to their teams. Yeoman Mears was handed a PADD and started on her way out the door to make her rounds and begin her assigned evaluations and repairs.

Scotty glanced at her as she passed by him and gave her a wink.


	3. Chapter 3

3.

The Enterprise had not been hit very hard by the enemy vessel but the damage that was done had taken a few days to repair. The worst of the damage was limited to shorted out circuitry and burnt wiring. But it was spread out all over the ship, which caused delay, and was damn inconvenient to Yeoman Mears social activities. Although the Enterprise escaped the attack, the ship-wide damaged circuits and wiring took days to repair.

Holding the rank of yeoman aboard a ship such as The Enterprise, meant nothing more than being a glorified electrician's mate. Under normal circumstances Cathleen's duties would be clerical; writing reports and making sure the correct personnel reviewed and signed them. This was more to her liking, compared to climbing through cramped Jefferies tubes, tracking through miles and miles of cable and wiring only to find a two inch section of burned out wire or circuit board that needed to be replaced. Unfortunately, these were not normal circumstances. Her secondary duties became her top priorities, and she was glad that she could at least wear a jump suit to do her dirty work instead of the service uniform she usually wore.

Finished with her work in the tube, Cathleen gathered her tools and began her descent. When she reached the opening she had to crawl out feet first, thankful again for the jumpsuit.

She stood up, and turned to find Mr. Scott leaning against the bulkhead smiling at her. It was the first time either one of them had been able to find time to speak to the other since the red alert had ended their dinner date a few nights ago.

"Hello, stranger," she said cheerfully as she approached him.

Pushing himself away from the bulkhead, he glanced up inside the tube and asked, "Ye bout' done up there?"

"I am."

"Would ye care to walk with me?"

"Sure." She smiled. "I was about to head back down to engineering anyway. I wouldn't mind an escort."

He became quiet and almost seemed nervous as they walked to the turbo lift.

As they waited for the lift to arrive, he finally spoke, "I'm really sorry I haven't had a chance to talk to ye since Friday night, Cathleen."

She nodded and replied, "I did wonder if you were a little miffed with me, but we've both been pretty busy the last couple days."

They stepped inside the lift, "Engineering," Scotty told the computer, and turned his attention to her.

"Not miffed, just…. a bit surprised." His ears turned slightly red. "I wanted to ask ye out the other night, before we were so rudely interrupted. If, that is, ye still wanted to spend some time together. Maybe tonight? If you're not busy?" He rushed anxiously through his words.

"Well," she faked a sigh, "it is short notice but I think I might be able to spare an hour or two."

"Brilliant!" a satisfied grin swept his face.

On the ride down to Engineering, they decided he would stop at her quarters at nineteen-hundred, and then go for drinks on the recreation deck.

Back in her quarters, she took a long hot bath. She washed her hair and shaved her legs before toweling herself off. She brushed and flossed her teeth carefully. Hurtling through space on a starship was no excuse for poor oral hygiene.

Digging through her closet, it didn't take long to figure out what she wanted to wear. Of course she would wear her service reds. Everyone on the ship always wore their service uniforms whether they were on duty on not. Although she had a few nice civilian ensembles she knew Scotty would appreciate, to wear them would only draw undue attention. However, she did have a few older uniforms that had gotten a little more "form fitting", as Tonia would say, and she settled on the least worn looking one.

She dried her dark auburn hair, styling it in the long bob she normally wore, applied a little makeup and picked out a small pair of gold hoops she had bought the last time she was on shore leave.

She wasn't one to wear a lot of perfume, but she dabbed a light floral scent to her wrists and neck. She slipped on her nylons and squeezed into her service reds.

Cathleen checked herself in the full length mirror, noting the older uniform had a great effect on her figure.

Busying herself, she killed a few minutes by tidying up their living space. Tonia and Cathleen were by no means slobs, but in the last few days neither of them had taken much time to pick up around the place. When they were assigned to room together, they had done their best to make their cabin cozy and homelike, but it didn't take much for the place to get messy.

She was folding a throw blanket when the door chimed. He was early.

She called out, "It's open!" and the door slid open.

Mr. Scott stepped through the door and apologized for being so early, stopping himself when he saw her. "Ye look…very nice, lass." He was wearing a fresh uniform and was clean shaven, hair neatly in place.

"Thank you. You look nice too. Did you get a haircut?" she asked.

"Aye, I got a lot of hairs cut," he joked awkwardly and smoothed the back of his freshly cropped head. "Are ye ready?"

"I am."

He proudly offered her his arm and added, "My lady?"

On the recreation deck they picked a table in the corner of the room where they would be less likely to be disturbed. They made small talk and shared a few drinks. Scotty convinced her to try some scotch, and then laughed at the faces she made while she sipped it. Finally, giving up, she begged him to order her another beer.

When the recreation deck became a little too crowded, he asked her if she wanted to go somewhere else a little more quiet. Cathleen agreed, and he took her by the hand to lead her up to the vacant observation deck.

"You know, people are going to start talking about us if they see us holding hands and hanging out together all the time." She told him as they stared out into the stars.

He stood behind her, close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his body. The observation deck was dim and quiet and she thought she knew exactly why he had brought her there. She hoped it wasn't for the star gazing.

He gently turned her around by her shoulders to face him. The warmth of his hands seeped through her sleeves and into her skin. "Two dates hardly qualifies as all the time, and I'm not worried about what people have to say about us Cathleen, are you?" His brown eyes softened as he studied her face.

"What if the captain has something to say?"

He sighed and thought for a moment before answering, "Captain Kirk is the last person who would judge, lass. He's had more love interests on this mission than anyone else on the ship."

"Am I a love interest?"

He placed her hands on his chest and held them. She could feel his heart beating under her hands, and she left them there even as he let go to slide his arms around her waist.

"I don't know about Captain Kirk, lass, but ye definitely interest me," he teased. "As long as we can manage to remain professional, the captain won't have a problem with our interests." His voice was reassuringly calm.

She leaned into him and he softly touched her lips with his. He was gentle and sweet with his kiss, and when he broke away to look at her, she smiled at him a little dazed and said, "I think we can manage that."


	4. Chapter 4

4.

Their love affair began as an old fashioned one. Cathleen honestly thought for awhile that had Scotty been able to talk to her father, he would have asked permission to court her. She could only imagine what her parents might think of the older Lieutenant Commander, but she thought he was fantastic. And although she hadn't worked up the nerve to tell him so, she was falling in love with him.

Professionally, they kept things as discreet as possible. Work was work, and what was private, was private. This seemed to be much easier for him than it was for her. It was difficult not to linger around him too often, even harder to make sure she addressed him by his proper titles when she was on duty.

Time spent with him was precious. When they did venture onto the recreation deck together, they would usually meet with mutual friends such as, Lieutenants Kyle or Leslie, along with Yeomen Barrows or Rand. It was obvious they were an item, he was a merciless flirt. But she still worried a little about what command might think, considering she was a yeoman and he was one of her superiors.

When they were alone together, they were completely together. He often delighted in stealing her away to places on the ship that she had no idea existed, to spend time talking, cuddling, and smooching, away from the curious eyes of their shipmates. And boy howdy, could he smooch. She figured out quickly enough, that if she let him come to her naturally, he was usually very open and affectionate with her. If she pushed him, he would shy away and she would have to wait patiently for him to come back around to her. It wasn't for lack of him wanting her, that's just how Scotty worked. He was bit old fashioned, and she accepted that.

Sometimes though, she found that when he was working on a project, he went inside his own little world. She called it his "zone". And when he was in his zone, nothing else seemed to matter to him. He would work for days at a time, forgoing sleep and sometimes eating, in favor of upgrading the transporters or re-routing power supplies, whether they needed it or not. When he had an idea in his head, he would obsess over it until he proved his theory and the modification was complete. When that happened it was best for her to just let him be, and wait until he was ready to come out of the zone.

The good part of it, was that it gave her some time to be with her girlfriends, who were always up for a gab and curious about her Scotsman. The bad part of it, was that when he came out of his little zone, he was often exhausted and a little on the grumpy side.

She found him in his office one evening after such an episode. They were alone and she stood behind him, rubbing his neck and shoulders.

"Ohhhh….. that feels good, lass, I need that," he mumbled.

She continued with the massage, running her thumbs up the back of his neck and back down to his shoulders. "What you need is to get out of here, get something to eat, and get to bed early."

"Not till I get this presentation done. I have a briefing at zero-eight-hundred tomorrow."

"And knowing you, you'll be down here at zero-six-hundred finishing you're presentation anyway." She continued, "I really don't see why you insist on doing everything yourself, Scotty, when you have your own crew to delegate some of the petty stuff to."

He reached up and caught her hand with his, rubbing it with his thumb, and looked at her with weary eyes. The dark circles made him look like he had lost some sort of fight. He was so tired. She just couldn't figure why he would do that to himself. It exasperated her.

"Let's go," she suggested softly. She tried to pull him up from his chair.

He protested, "Let me just finish….."

"NOW MISTER!"

His eyes widened. "Aye, aye, _Ma'am_."

She led him by the hand down to the mess hall. She was almost afraid if she let go he would run from her and lock himself in his office.

He sat down at a table across from Dr. McCoy and Nurse Chapel while she went to order his food.

When she came back with a tray, she set it down in front of him and told him to eat. McCoy and Chapel looked over from their conversation.

"Bossy little thing, isn't she, Mr. Scott?" McCoy asked the exhausted engineer.

Chapel gave the doctor a playful slap on the arm. "Shush you, I like her."

Scotty glared at all three of them and ate in silence. When he was done, she took his tray back to the return and led him out in the direction of his quarters. When they arrived, he silently unlocked the door and she followed him in.

Cathleen had never been in Scotty's cabin before, and as she looked around for a minute she figured it couldn't be that much different than any other man's quarters. She marched into what she thought must be his bedroom and found the dresser. She took a guess and pulled a drawer open, rummaging around until she found what she was looking for.

When she came out, she found him standing right where she left him. He looked at her like he wanted to say something but thought better of it, and she handed him a pair of pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. "Go change."

While he changed his clothes, she took a look around his quarters. She couldn't exactly say it was a typical bachelor pad. It wasn't as if he had girlie magazines lying around and pin up posters on the wall. But his room definitely had a masculine vibe to it. She wasn't surprised to find he had a few decanters containing various types of alcohol, several back issues of Popular Mechanics and Journal of Aerospace Engineering, and a set of bag pipes displayed in a case on the wall. Overall, it was tidy and had a hint of his aftershave lingering.

She heard his bathroom door open and called out, "Are you decent?"

"Aye," he replied quietly. And she went into his room to find him stashing some things from his pockets in a tray on the dresser, and putting his dirty uniform in the hamper. She realized that the service uniform he normally wore wasn't as flattering to him as his PJ's, and if he didn't look so pathetically tired, she would have jumped him then and there.

She reached up under the pillows and pulled the covers down. "In," she ordered, pointing to the bed. He stood there in silence and looked at her for a moment. She didn't know if he was angry with her or not, but he wasn't fighting her, and she was relieved when he crawled under the covers. His eyes became very heavy when he laid his head on the pillow, and when she pulled the blankets up around him, he closed them.

Cathleen ordered the lights down, bent down to kiss him, and told him she would see him at work in the morning.

"Don't go yet," he finally spoke.

"What?"

"I don't want ye to go. Not yet." Then he added, "Please."

She looked down at him and sighed. "Move over."

He scooted over on the bed and she propped herself up next to him on top of the blankets, boots and all. "I suppose you'll want a story?"

He nodded and cuddled up to her like a little boy. "It's the least ye can do for makin' me go to bed early."

She looked down at his tired face, smiled, and stroked his hair. "A long time ago….in a galaxy far, far away…"


	5. Chapter 5

5.

Scotty and Cathleen were sitting in her quarters on the sofa one evening looking through a photo album.

The time was nearing the Earth's Winter Solstice and it made Cathleen feel nostalgic, maybe even a little homesick for a winter festival, and she thought sharing some childhood photos and memories with him, might make her feel better. She had asked him if he wouldn't mind indulging her and he had agreed.

She curled up next to him under his arm with a cup of coffee, and opened the album sitting in his lap.

"You promise you won't laugh?" she asked.

"I promise I'll _try_ not to laugh."

He pointed to the first picture on the page, a picture of her standing on the front porch of her childhood home, and asked, "That you frownin'?"

"It is. I was four and my mother made me wear that dress my first day of school. I hated that dress."

"And how old were ye here?" pointing to the next photo. She was sitting in the grass playing with a liter of gray puppies.

"I was seven. My mom's dog had puppies." She looked up at him and gave him a fake pout. "I cried when we gave them away."

"I didn't know ye were an animal lover, Cathleen," he replied, giving her a quick peck on her pouting lips. He smiled down at her.

"Scotty, who doesn't like puppies?"

"True enough," he nodded.

They flipped to the next page and she explained that the pictures were from a fly fishing trip she had taken with her father when she was thirteen. They had fished for steelhead that day. In the photos she pointed out her father and her brother Jeff, and he remarked that she looked just like her dad.

They flipped to another page. This one held pictures of Cathleen around ten, with her brother, playing in the snow. In one picture, they were building a snow fort, in another they were standing proudly next to a lop sided snow man.

In the photo her mother was standing in the background brushing snow off the front steps.

"I take it ye see a lot of snow in Ohio?" Scotty asked, his eyes darting from picture to picture.

"Yeah, but not much before Christmas. That was taken the first day of winter so it was a treat because they had to close school. Most of the heavy snow doesn't come till January," she explained, taking a sip of her coffee. "That is one thing I do miss about Earth, the snow."

He closed the album and set it aside.

"So tell me, lass, what else do ye miss about Earth?" He leaned back in his seat a little more so he could see her face and waited for her to answer.

"I miss… going to the movies, county fairs, and skinny dipping down at the pond."

He raised his eyebrows at her. "Sounds like ye've given it some thought."

"Well, I have lately with the holidays coming." She paused for a minute and then continued, "I always dreamed about getting away from home and joining Starfleet. Now I miss it. What about you Scotty, do you ever get homesick?"

"Lass, I've been a member of Starfleet for over twenty years now. This is my home, the crew is my family"

Cathleen raised her head to look at him and smiled. She put her arm around his waist and squeezed him in a half hug. " Yeah," she said, "at least we all have each other."

Scotty tipped her chin up with his finger and kissed her softly.

"Aye, that we do, lass, that we do."


	6. Chapter 6

6.

Cathleen had all but forgotten about her winter holiday by the time the event actually took place. The day of Earth's Winter Solstice had not been going smoothly. To be precise, on Earth, it would indeed be the shortest day of the year, but to her, light-years away on The Enterprise, it seemed like the longest.

She had been called for duty to the bridge, which was bad enough. Being on the bridge meant working with Commander Spock and the Captain. Captain Kirk wasn't so bad. Although he did have a tendency to nitpick, for the most part he meant well. Mr. Spock on the other hand, intimidated the hell out of her, and could be just down right condescending at times. She was used to the noisiness of engineering and the quietness of the bridge made her feel unsettled, like she was in a library -- or being watched.

Cathleen had survived a morning of scrutiny and made it through lunch when she noticed with aggravation, a run in her nylons. Shortly after that she slammed her finger in a drawer, and after retrieving a stylus she had dropped, she smacked her head on the console. This drew a raised eyebrow from the first officer and a sympathetic look from Lieutenant Uhura.

Soon her shift would be over and she could go back to her quarters, eat some dinner, take a hot bath, maybe write her mother, and hopefully go to bed early. She had not been able to see Scotty in three days, and did not get her hopes up to do so. He had been busy working on a project that was apparently on a "need to know basis", and according to him, Cathleen did not have a need to know. Professionally, she tried to understand when he went into his "zone". After all, Starfleet did have it's secrets and he was expected to keep them. Personally however, it irked her to no end, and she felt left out and a little lonely.

The comm bleeped on the Captain's chair.

"Bridge," answered the Captain."

"Scott, here Captain. If ye'll not be needin' Yeoman Mears assistance much longer would ye mind sendin' her to the shuttle bay?"

Her heart skipped a little to know he was asking for her.

"Certainly, Mr. Scott."

"Thank you, Captain. Scott out."

"Yeoman?" Kirk asked, turning in his chair. "Did you hear that request?"

"Yes, sir," she answered.

"On your way then," he ordered.

"Yes, Captain."

She met Scotty just outside the shuttle bay doors. He handed her a pair of cold climate cover-alls, explained there was a problem with environmental controls in the shuttle bay, and asked her how her day went.

She glared at him as she shoved her feet into the legs of her cover-alls and zipped them up.

"That good, aye?" he chuckled and jammed a toboggan down on her head, covering her eyes.

Cathleen flipped the edge of her hat up so she could glare at him again.

"Ye're adorable when ye're flustered, lass," he smirked. "Let's hurry now. The sooner we get this done and over with, the sooner we can get out of here."

He palmed the bay doors open and swept his arm out in front of her. "Ladies first."

It finally dawned on her that he was up to something. He just seemed a little too happy about having to work late. She gave him a questioning look and stepped into the shuttle bay. It didn't seem as brightly lit as usual and a cold blast of air hit her like a wall.

She stopped dead in her tracks at what she saw, and her jaw dropped.

It was snowing in the shuttle bay.

Cathleen was speechless. She walked out to the center of the bay watching the small white flakes fall to the floor. She held her hand out to catch the crystals on her fingertips and studied them. It really was snow; it had fallen about a linear foot deep, and had blanketed the Columbus and the Galileo. Scotty had made it snow.

She turned to face a grinning Scotty and asked, "How did you do this?" The snow made her voice sound eerily quiet.

"Well, I did it the same as Mother Nature would. Some moisture, some cold air…….a little tweakin' here and there…."

She barely heard a word he said, all she could focus on was the snow. She parted her legs, held out her arms, and fell straight back into the thick blanket of snow that had formed on the floor. She heard him in the distance of her thoughts explain something about snow making machines. She waved her arms and legs out and in and carefully stood up to admire her work. A perfect snow angel, there in a shuttle bay, on a starship.

"Well?" asked Scotty.

"It's just….perfect."

He stood next to her under the falling snow and took her hand. "Happy Solstice, Cathleen."

Surprised that he remembered when she had actually forgotten, she turned to him and hugged him fiercely. "Thank you….thank you." She kissed him. "Thank you…. it's perfect. Happy Solstice, Scotty. It's going to be a great Christmas!" Her eyes were sparkling now, and he smiled down at her.

"The Captain and some of the crew will be down in a few minutes to see this, but I wanted ye to see it first. Everyone will enjoy it, that I'm sure of, but I did it for you. You make me so happy; I wanted to make you happy"

She was stunned at his heartfelt speech. He was thinking of her the whole time, and she knew without it needing to be said, that he loved her.

"This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. You do make me happy, and you've made my day."

"It's gonna be a _great_ Christmas," she repeated, hopping up and down and clapping her gloved hands in excitement.

"You really can do anything, Scotty."

He shrugged bashfully, "It was nothing."


	7. Chapter 7

7.

The door swished open. Scotty and Cathleen turned to see their captain, Mr. Spock, and Dr. McCoy enter the shuttle bay.

The men stopped and looked around the room, astonished. Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock approached the couple, but Dr. McCoy was the first to speak.

"Well…. I'll ….be… damned….it's snowing…" he said, wandering past the group to have a look at the wintry scene.

Scotty," Kirk began, "you made it…. snow… on a starship." His breath made little white puffs as he spoke.

"Aye, Captain," Scotty started to explain, "I thought it would be nice for the crew to have a white Christmas this year."

Spock stood in his familiar stance with his hands clasped behind his back, looking at the Captain for his response.

Kirk knelt down and pondered the snow. He took some in his hands and stood up, packing it between his fingers. "This is a lot of snow, Scotty.

"Aye, Captain. I started on it yesterday after I rigged the snow machine to the waterlines." He added cautiously, "If ye need me to, I can always turn the heat up and let it melt off."

_WHUMP!_

Spock flinched as a pelt of snow hit him square in the back of his head.

The group turned to see where it came from to find Dr. McCoy standing across the room, his startling blue eyes wide, and a rather boyish grin spreading on his face.

The Captain smirked and handed over the snowball he had been playing with to Spock.

Spock regarded the icy ball, looked up at the Captain, raised an eyebrow, and twisted to hurl the ball, nailing McCoy right in the chest.

The first officer and doctor began scooping up snow as fast as they could to throw at each other.

"Scotty, the snow is fine," Kirk laughed watching his senior officers and added, "We'll try to leave it for a few days and let the rest of the crew have a chance to enjoy it."

"Aye, Captain."

Scotty and Kirk took sides and a snow ball fight ensued. Kirk and Spock both lobbing snowballs at the doctor while Scotty knelt by him and packed ammunition, stacking it in piles beside him.

Cathleen comm'ed her roommate Tonia.

"Tonia, you're not going to believe this, Scotty made it snow in the shuttle bay for me. You have to get down here and see it."

"Are you puttin' me on, Cathy?" Tonia sounded skeptical.

"I'm serious!" Cathleen was shouting into the comm, "We're having a snowball fight! Pass the word around….. and wear some warm clothes!"

She ran back over to where Spock and Kirk were taking cover behind a shuttle.

The captain turned to her and said excitedly, "Yeoman, you take over here for a minute, I'm going to find some coats."

She scooted up to take his place and packed a snowball. She spied Scotty sneaking behind the shuttle. She looked over at Spock, and tilted her head towards Scotty. "Gimme some cover fire!" she hissed to him and he acknowledged with a nod.

She added her snowball to his pile and ran for it. Spock started hurling random snowballs in McCoy's direction and she snuck up behind Scotty, scooped up an armful of snow and dumped it on his head. He shouted in surprise and turned on his assailant, picking her up in a fireman's carry. He ran with her, screaming over his shoulder, and dumped her in a drift next to the doctor.

McCoy shouted, "HA, SPOCK! WE'VE TAKEN HER PRISONER."

"IRRELEVENT, DOCTOR! THE CAPTAIN HAS RETURNED WITH REINFORCEMENTS! YOU ARE NOW OUT NUMBERED" Spock shouted back. The Vulcan almost sounded amused.

Cathleen escaped her captors to join her friends, who couldn't believe they were actually seeing a snowball fight on The Enterprise. They all had the same reaction; stunned silence, mouths agape, awe, disbelief, and finally, childlike excitement.

Some other off duty crewmen had joined the snowball fight already in progress and the ladies found a corner out of the way and began constructing a snowman. Much to Tina's delight, Ensign Chekov joined them.

Someone, somewhere, started singing. "Oh the weather outside if frightful…. but the fire is so delightful…and since we've no place to go…." Others answered by joining in, "LET IT SNOW…. LET IT SNOW…. LET IT SNOW!!"

Cathleen watched what was happening around her. She was having the time of her life making new memories with a new family of sorts. And they were having the time of their lives with her.

For one moment they could all forget about space viruses, aliens who wanted them dead, or Starfleet, and just come to the shuttle bay to play in the snow. It was a special time none of them would ever forget.

They weren't her parents or her brother but she knew they all cared about her as much as she cared about them, and she was happy that they had been there to share this winter festival with her.

Later, curled up on the sofa next to Scotty in his quarters wrapped in a blanket she made sure she told him that.

"I am so glad ye liked it. It was all for you." He kissed her and his warmth spread through her, chasing away the damp chill in her bones better than any cup of cocoa ever could.

She snuggled her face against his chest and asked, "So, when are we going skinny dipping?"


	8. Chapter 8

8.

Five days after The Earth's Winter Solstice, Christmas came quietly to The Enterprise.

Most of the ships crew celebrated amongst themselves with a few parties and private gatherings. Everyone figured it would be impossible to top the gift of snow that their chief engineer had so thoughtfully bestowed on them, and they had all enjoyed it so much, no one dared try.

Cathleen and Scotty shared Christmas Eve together working, but made plans to spend Christmas morning together at his place.

When Cathleen arrived at his quarters late in the morning, she was surprised to find Scotty setting a table for brunch. She set a gift bag that she had brought with her on the sofa and came over to the table.

"Something smells good." She kissed him hello.

"Thought it would be nice to eat in this morning."

"Um, okay…" Cathleen scrunched up her nose. "I just figured we were going to the mess hall to eat rather than eat from the replicators."

"We're not eating from the replicators" He pulled out a chair for her. "Sit down and I'll get ye some coffee."

"So, who cooked?" She sat down, unfolded her napkin and placed it in her lap, eyeing the dish of fruit in front of her.

"I did," she heard him answer from the kitchen alcove.

_Oh boy, what have I gotten myself into? _She thought for a moment.

Her silence brought him out of the alcove. He smiled when he found that she had not tried to escape, but was still sitting, napkin in her lap, staring at him from the table.

Scotty tried to reassure her as he poured her coffee. "I _can_ cook ye know. My mum made me learn." He smiled proudly.

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me," she laughed still looking a little concerned.

"Don't worry lass, it's not haggis."

He set a plate of cheddar scones and a baking dish that looked like it contained a breakfast casserole on the table.

"I didn't even have to bribe anyone like ye did."

Cathleen poured herself some orange juice and sipped it while he dished out the casserole on her plate. "You have a nicer kitchen than I do, and you were worth it." She thanked him and he sat down across from her filling his own plate and watched her eat.

She took a bite and savored the flavor of eggs, sausage, and peppers for a moment._ Not bad, not bad at all_. She took another bite and looked up at him from her plate. He waited for her response. "It's good," she said swallowing. "It's _really_ good."

He looked pleased and dug in to his own plate.

When they finished eating and clearing the dishes away, they took their coffee cups and made themselves comfortable on the sofa. She picked up the bag and handed it to him.

"What's all this?" he asked, peering inside. He pulled out a red stocking and chuckled. "Is there a lump of coal in here?"

"There might be. You'll have to look."

He dumped the contents out on the small table in front of him to find and orange, an apple, some peppermint sticks and an assortment of candy and nuts, but no coal.

He smiled and stuck a peppermint stick in the side of his mouth and looked back in the bag.

He pulled out a bottle Chevas Regal.

"I wasn't sure of your brand, and I know it's blended but I hope you like it," Cathleen explained. "It took some doing to get it here in time for Christmas."

"Ohhhhhh, ho, ho, I like it! He turned the bottle, reading the label. "Ye can count on it lass, I like it," he said, and thanked her with a peppermint kiss.

Scotty reached over to the end table, picked up a small box and handed it to her. He munched on the peppermint stick, watching her tear off the paper and fling the box lid aside. She gasped a little in surprise.

Inside was a tiny gold Enterprise on a chain. She held the little star ship up and let it turn on the chain so she could see all the little details engraved in the gold. "It's beautiful, Scotty. Thank you."

Scotty took the chain from her and helped her put it on. She turned to him and kissed him sweetly on his mouth. Kicking his feet up on the table, he drew her closer and leaned back with her against the sofa. Cathleen cuddled up against him and lightly stroked his ear with her thumb.

"Merry Christmas Scotty."

"Merry Christmas Cathleen." He turned his face slightly to kiss the palm of her hand.

She glanced up at his face and caught him watching her. Saw his desire and knew in that instant that he wanted her, that he too was waiting for one of them to make the next move.

It was then she decided to ask him for what she really wanted, what she needed, and she summoned her courage to do so. It was now or never for her. Opportunity was knocking loudly, and she hoped he would answer the damn door.

"Scotty," she began tentatively, "I didn't exactly get everything I wanted for Christmas."

He reached up and took her hand in his and studied her face. "What is it ye wanted _exactly,_ lass?" His brow furrowed and he frowned.

Her heart pounded in her chest and she answered, "You…. I want you."

She felt her throat tighten, but she had said it, and got the words out. She could feel the heat rise in her face. She had never felt so uncertain in her life. Unsure if she had read him correctly, and gambling with it. Her heart beat so loudly, the sound filled her ears and she was afraid she might miss his answer.

His dark gaze never wavered from her eyes and she wished she could read his thoughts. Another minute slipped by.

He softly brushed his lips against hers and finally said, "If ye _really_ want me, then ye can have me, but I ain't wearin' no bow."


	9. Chapter 9

9.

Cathleen and Scotty could barely keep their hands off each other long enough to move from the sofa. He managed to push himself away long enough to make sure the door was locked, and took her in his arms once more, covering her mouth with his own. She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned into his chest to steady herself.

Her small hands trembling, Cathleen slid them under the hem of his shirt so she could feel his bare skin with her fingers. Scotty sucked in a quick breath and spoke raggedly against her lips, "Bed."

She nodded her consent and they made their way across his quarters to his bedroom, kissing, groping, and leaving a trail of clothing on the floor.

Cathleen hopped around on one foot, giggling, trying to free herself from her stockings. Scotty scooped her up and plopped her down on the bed, peeling the offending nylons off her legs and tossing them over his shoulder with a grin.

She smiled up at him and watched him strip down to his shorts. He ordered the lights low, knelt on the bed, and settled down into her awaiting arms.

He kissed her deeply, gently, exploring her mouth with his tongue. The sweet peppermint taste of his mouth and the warm scent of his skin intoxicated her. She wriggled in his arms trying to press herself closer. His kisses became more feverish, yet still gentle; his calloused hands were hot and velvety against her skin. She gasped, then grabbed his hair, his shoulders, and clung to his kiss. Then she couldn't kiss him fast enough or hard enough. She couldn't kiss him _enough. _

Even with his own restraint waning, Scotty eased her away. "Darlin', relax," he spoke in a husky voice, "I promise, ye can have whatever ye want."

His fingers stroked light caresses along her collarbone, and Cathleen relaxed back into the pillows, letting the weight of him settle along the length of her body. His light kisses danced along her jaw line, and she shivered as his lips touched her neck.

His hand slid down to cup her breasts, his thumb teasing her nipples one at a time into small peaks though the thin fabric of her bra. He lifted her slightly and reached behind her to pop the clasp, setting her breasts free, and flicked the under garment to the floor. Moving back to her breasts, he covered them with open kisses, making her whimper, and settled on a nipple, tugging it with his mouth.

Their legs entwined and Cathleen could feel him pushing against her through his shorts. She gently ground back against him and heard him groan as he lowered his mouth to her other breast. She felt a coil tighten inside her with an urgency that made her head spin.

He trailed a hand to the waistband of her panties, boldly slid his fingers under the fabric, and began stroking her, feeling her, knowing just exactly how she wanted to be touched. His fingers felt wonderful inside her and he pressed his thumb against her nub. She made a soft sound and ran her hands down the length of his body, feeling muscle and skin beneath her palms.

"More," she demanded.

Scotty moved away so he could sit up. He hooked his fingers under her panties and pulled them off. He sat near the middle of the bed, removed his own shorts and leaned back on his heels.

Scotty reached out for her hand and said in a low voice, "Come' ere, Love."

Seeing him in that state, with his hair disheveled, skin flushed, and fully aroused, only fueled her desire for him even more, and she eagerly scrambled to him.

He took her by the hips, setting her tiny frame on the tops of his powerful thighs so that she was straddling him, and braced her with his forearm. She put her arms around his neck and he used his other hand to reach behind her, gently guiding himself into her, pulling her down on his erection.

She let her head fall back and moaned a low and pitiful sound. He ran his free hand up her back to support her head and devoured her neck with lips and teeth.

He began to rock her slowly and murmur against her skin how lovely she was-- how good she felt-- how much he had always wanted her.

She was always amazed at how strong he really was. She had witnessed it plenty of times while he worked; pulling away access panels and climbing all over the ship. She knew what his arms felt like when he hugged and held her. But this was different, she felt secure in his embrace and she completely let go, arching her back against his arm, letting her hands rest on his biceps.

Her breath quickened, her skin tingled, and her body burned for him. She felt him move through her in every fiber. Waves of pleasure rippled through her. She lifted her head so she could see his face looking at her, adoring her with his dark eyes, worshipping her with his body.

Cathleen surrendered herself and the wave she was riding came crashing down over her, making her shudder and cry out in release.

Hearing her shattered cry was Scotty's undoing. He lifted her up a little higher on his legs and rocked her back harder with a thrust, losing himself in her. He kissed her harder, gripped her tighter, and came hard with a soft growl.

He continued his hold on her while their climax began to fade. She slumped against the hardness of his chest to rest for a moment, kissing his face. First his cheeks, then moving to his nose-his eyes-his lips.

"Are ye alright?" he asked, "Ye're shakin." His warm breath washed over her in quick rushes. Little rivulets of sweat ran down the sides of his face.

She silently nodded, resting her forehead against his.

Scotty smiled and kissed her, laying her back on the bed. He reached up and pulled the covers down, helping her crawl under them before settling next to her and taking her back into his arms.

She lay there with her head on his chest, breathing him in and listening to him breathe.

"You are a really good dancer," she said quietly smiling.

"What was that, lass?"

"Nothing."


	10. Chapter 10

10.

When Cathleen Mears arrived back at her quarters the following morning, she was relieved to find her friend and roommate, Tonia Barrows, was not there. The last thing she needed as she came in looking like something the proverbial cat had dragged in, was the third degree from Tonia.

Cathleen shucked off the service reds that she had donned the day before, and took a look at herself in the mirror while she brushed her teeth. Her lips were puffy and kiss bruised, and her neck was pink from stubble burn.

Reeking of sweat and sex, she stepped into the hot shower. As she washed her hair and body she noted several muscles that were sore and smiled to herself, remembering who and what had made them that way. She had always thought the term "making love" sounded silly or cheesy, but that's exactly what they had done. The thought of the way he touched her sent a little ripple through her. She loved him and he had made her feel beautiful.

After drying herself off she slipped into a pair of cotton pajama bottoms and an old Ohio State t-shirt her brother had sent her when she was at Starfleet. She came out of the bathroom and found Tonia standing there with her arms crossed, waiting. _Aw, shit! Here we go…._

"Alright, spill! Where were you last night? And better yet, with who?" Tonia asked, sounding a bit maternal.

"Don't you mean with whom?" Cathleen retorted sarcastically.

"Whom, who, whatever! WHOM were you with?"

"Now who do you think I was with Tonia? Honestly!"

Tonia's jaw dropped and her green eyes became as wide as saucers. "OH MY GOD, CATHY! You finally slept with Mr. Scott didn't you?"

She felt like Tonia was accusing her of doing something wrong. It hadn't felt wrong. It had felt perfectly right, and Cathleen went into defense mode.

"Tonia, it's not like we haven't been seeing each other for awhile now. I'm not some slut like that superficial bitch Palamas the guys are always slobbering over."

Tonia went to go get coffee from the replicator, and Cathleen curled up on the sofa.

"I know you're not a slut Cathy," she called out from the tiny kitchen alcove, "it's just that...Scotty always seems like he'd be so proper. I didn't think you were ever gonna get laid unless you married him first."

Tonia brought back two steaming mugs and handed one to Cathleen. "You didn't marry him did you?" Cathleen shook her head.

"You have to tell me everything."

"There's really not much to tell. I went over to his place for Christmas, we had brunch, opened presents," she said, lifting the little starship out of her shirt to show it off, "and he shagged... me... senseless." She sighed with satisfaction.

Tonia admired the gold charm. "This is really pretty. You have no idea how jealous I am right now."

"Tonia, you're a beautiful woman. You could have any man on this ship. Go get one."

Tonia looked at her wistfully. "That's easy for you to say. The man I want doesn't know I'm alive, and I can't cook like you can to win anyone over."

Cathleen was getting annoyed with the pity party. "You have talent in abundance that any man would be happy to have in a woman. And I happen to know," she smiled slyly, "that Kevin Riley finds you very attractive."

"He does?"

"Yes, he does." She didn't tell Tonia about the lewd comments some of the guys had made about her red hair, or how Kevin had defended her and taken a ribbing for it.

"Unless you were actually serious about having the hots for Dr. McCoy, I could easily set you up with Kevin. He is a little younger than you though........... You weren't serious about Dr. McCoy were you?"

The guilty look Tonia had on her face gave her away.

"OOOHHHHH!! You were serious!" It was then that Cathleen realized that her friend could talk big about men in front of her friends, but deep down she was just as self-conscious as any other girl.

"Well, you could always go to sickbay and complain of female hysteria. See what that 'old country doctor' has to say about that," she suggested.

Tonia laughed. "Maybe I'll just try to get on a landing party. He always goes on landing parties, and I could flirt with him and send him some signals."

Cathleen leaned over and hugged Tonia. "That sounds like an idea. But don't discount Kevin just yet, okay? You wouldn't want to overlook the orchid while you're searching for the rose."

Tonia gave Cathleen a strange look. "That almost sounded like something Scotty would say."

"Aye, it does!" Cathleen grinned.

"Now you're starting to scare me."


	11. Chapter 11

11.

Scotty and Cathleen were alone one afternoon in his office. Cathleen sat straddling Scotty's lap in a very unlady-like manner, smooching him, and playing with his hair. It had been days since Christmas. The ship had resumed its normal, busy routine, and it was the first time they had a chance to spend more than a few precious minutes together.

"What are your plans tonight Mr. Scott?" she asked, hoping she would be a part of them.

"I have a function to go to." He grimaced at the thought. "Haf'ta be there under the captain's orders."

"Awwwww," she pouted. "Seems like forever since we've seen each other."

"I think forever is a slight exaggeration, lass. Believe me if I could get out of it, I would."

He played with the legs of her red brief trunks, pulling them away with his fingers and letting them snap back into place against her bottom. The stinging sensation it caused made her squirm against him and he grunted in discomfort. Cathleen knew he was horny; otherwise he wouldn't be getting so cozy with her for fear of someone walking in on them. He would never go any farther than where they were at the moment in his office, but it gave her an idea.

"If _I_ can get you out of it, will you let me spend the night with you?" she mused.

Scotty chuckled at her determination and kissed her. "And how might ye be planning to do that?"

"Never you mind," she answered, giving him a wicked smile. "Just be ready to make your exit when I break you out." She wasn't exactly sure how she would go about it, but she was going to get him out come hell or high water.

Later that evening, a party was in full swing at Lieutenant Kevin Riley's quarters. Some of the crew had packed themselves in to his small cabin to listen to music, play cards, and share some of their Christmas booty, which mainly consisted of alcohol and goodies sent from family back home, and friends on other distant planets.

Cathleen had originally opted not to go to the party until Kevin, (being one of her dearest friends, and one of the few people Cathleen was unable to say no to) pointed out to her, that there was no use sitting around her quarters when there was merriment and mischief to be had.

She arrived with a bag of Mike-Sells potato chips and a six-pack of Arcanis Lager, and soon found herself deep in a game of Chandeliers with Kevin, Lieutenants Frank Brent, John Kyle, Kevin's roommate Ed Leslie, and her roommate Tonia. The ladies were winning. Cathleen and Tonia were buzzing, but they had not been forced to drink from their cups as often as the guys. And in not feeling the effects of the alcohol as much, it was easier to make their goals.

Cathleen plunked a coin into the center shot and everyone downed their beer. Kevin slammed his beer cup down last, and reluctantly plucked the shot glass from the center of the table.

Leaning over towards her buddy Kevin, she asked with her sweetest smile, "Kevin my darling?"

He put an arm around her shoulder and gazed at her with drunken adoration. "Yes, my dearest?"

Lieutenants Dave Galloway and Roger Lemli were playing euchre with Janice Rand and Angela Martine at another table. The group turned their attention to witness the silly antics of Kevin and Cathleen.

"Would you do something for me?"

He playfully kissed the top of her hand and fluttered his eyelashes. "Anything for you Cathleen."

"Would you go to that lil' comm over there and call Mr. Scott to Engineering?"

"Except that," he said flatly.

Cathleen looked at Kevin with her best puppy dog eyes. "Pleeeeeeeeaasssseeee?"

His eyes widened and he backed away. "Oh no! I don't think so. I'm not messing around with Mr. Scott tonight, he hates me, I know it."

"Kevie, he doesn't hate you!" she reassured him.

"Kevie?" Dave snickered.

Kevin shot him an icy glance and answered Cathleen stiffly, "No."

"Come on Kevie," she whined, "you're my _best_ friend. And I promise, I _PROMISE_ he'll be glad you called him away under false pretense.

Tonia continued with the plea. "He's at some stuffy party, Kevin. We just can't have that. We have a humanitarian obligation to bust him out!"

Kevin considered the girls for moment and Cathleen used it as an opportunity to change her strategy.

"I double....dog.... dare you," she challenged, knowing he could not possibly resist and lose face in front of the guys.

This drew a "WWWWOOOOOOOOOO!!!" from the rest of their little gang. "Kev! Kev! Kev! Kev! They chanted.

He leaned back in his chair, slugged his shot, slammed the glass down on the table, and stood. "I'll do it!"

"Yay!" She clapped her hands. "He's In Conference Room A."

All eyes were on Kevin as he half-staggered to the comm. He cleared his throat, and with a look of concentration, pressed the call button.

"Riley to Mr. Scott."

"Scott, here," Scotty's voice answered through the speaker.

Angela giggled and Kevin put his finger to his lips to shush her.

"Sir, I hate to bother you, but I'm getting some strange readings from the matter-antimatter reaction chamber. I think you should come down and check it out."

There was a pause. "I'll be right there. Scott out"

He came back to the table smiling proudly. "He said he'll be right there." The gang applauded his performance.

Cathleen bounced her bonus toss into Kevin's cup and said, "Drink!" before she kissed his cheek and headed out the door.

Cathleen raced down to Engineering and met Scotty at the door.

"I told you I'd get you out!" she said excitedly.

"Aye, ye're clever lass. Some Federation High Commissioner was there and I didn't think he'd ever shut up!"

Scotty comm'ed the captain and let him know everything was alright; that he was just going to check a few more things and call it a night. The captain agreed and when the conversation ended he turned to Cathleen and asked, "Now what?"

"We party!"

Cathleen led Scotty back to Kevin's quarters. They snuck through access passages so they wouldn't be seen. After all, Scotty was supposed to be working since he had blown off the captain.

They walked into Kevin's and Cathleen announced, "We're back!"

Scotty stood awkwardly for a minute and Cathleen offered him a chair and tried to reassure him that he was among friends.

"We were getting ready to play Battleship, Sir. We'd be happy to teach it to you," Lieutenant Galloway said, setting up the two rows of beer cups that were required for the game. "Janice can be on my team, and Cathy can be on your team."

"I really shouldn't be here, ye're all my subordinates." He sat down at the table and eyed them all.

"Oh come on Mr. Scott," Kevin said as he handed him a coin. "For one night we can be friends, can't we? You can go back to brow beating and ballyraggin' us first thing tomorrow..........Sir."

Lieutenant Kyle piped in. "Yes Mr. Scott, consider it part of morale building. Most of us are part of Engineering, and you need to get to know your crew a little better. Cept' for Frank, he's one of McCoy's flunkies." He nodded towards Lieutenant Brent. "But we don't hold that against him."

Scotty was still considering whether or not it was such a good idea.

Tonia stood up from her chair waving her hand towards the counter where all the food and spirits were laid out, and said, "Come to the dark side Mr. Scott, we have all the booze."

"And junk food," Angela added.

"Well," Scotty finally relented, "since ye put it that way...laddies, let the games begin"


	12. Chapter 12

12.

Cathleen moved in her sleep and felt a cool spot beside her where he should have been. Leaning up on her elbow she saw him move around the other side of the darkened room. She noted the hour on the clock, zero-six-hundred, and asked drowsily, "I thought you were off today?"

Scotty walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, leaned down to kiss her face and said quietly, "Aye, but I need to check in with Engineering. I won't be gone long."

He smelled so good, soapy and clean. _Mmmmmm, freshly showered man…. _She started to sit up and swayed. Her head swam with a harsh throb and she groaned, pressing her fingers to her temples.

"No need to get up lass, you stay right here an' sleep it off," he said, guiding her back down to the pillow. "That's an order."

Cathleen didn't know what time Scotty returned. She only noticed his presence when she woke late that morning. Something warm and heavy was resting on the curve of her hip. He had crawled back into bed sometime while she was still sleeping and was now curled up against her back with an arm draped over her. His fingers twitched against her hip and a little shiver rippled over her skin. She scooted back against him for warmth and found he was naked. A sudden realization came over her. She had to pee.

Cathleen snuck out of bed in the dark and tip-toed naked to use the bathroom. She tripped over his boots and cursed quietly, trying not to wake her sleeping Scotsman. She washed her hands, splashed water on her face, and rinsed her mouth; removing the last of her hangover. After she patted her face and hands dry, she slipped back into bed.

As she lay there, she looked around his room. Even with the lights dim, she could make out the features. It was simple, masculine, nothing much in the way of art work with the exception of an antique looking tartan hanging on the wall. His dress uniform and kilt hung on a valet stand in the corner. It made her think of the song about the drunken Scotsman and she wondered if the legend was true.

The bed was definitely bigger than hers, and it seemed more plush. Scotty cherished what little time he had to sleep and had obviously kept comfort in mind when he chose his bedding.

She turned to him so she could see his face and watched him sleep for a moment. She reached out and lightly touched and traced the features and lines of his face. He looked different to her now, younger, softer. He opened his eyes and smiled.

"Did I keep ye waitin' too long?" he asked in a sleepy voice.

She shook her head no.

He rubbed his eyes and stretched. "Did ye have a good kip?"

She nodded. "My headache's gone"

"Good." He moved in and kissed her, settling her into the crook of one arm. He closed his eyes again. "Never get drunk unless ye're willing to pay for it - the next day."

Cathleen trailed her hand over the sparse hair on his chest and goose bumps appeared.

"Are you ticklish Scotty?" she asked, inching her fingers over his ribs.

He grabbed her hand. "Now, now, lass, don't be startin' somethin' ye can't finish."

"Start what? I'm not starting anything," she said innocently. She nudged the rib under her trapped fingers making him squirm.

"Ye're goin' the right way for a smacked bottom!" he warned, peeping down at her with one eye. She giggled and tried to tickle him again.

"Oh! You've done it now!" He pulled her arm up under his and pinned it grabbing her bottom with his free hand. He slapped a buttcheek and then pinched it, making her squeal. She tried to fight him but he pushed her to her back and levered himself over her pinning her arms up over her head with one hand so he could tickle her ribs. He blew raspberries on her ribs and belly, making her thrash and buck. Laughing, she begged him to stop.

Scotty slowed his hands to soft caressing and maneuvered himself so that he could lie comfortably between her thighs. He worked her mouth deliberately for a time, tasting her but not rushing her. She felt tranquilized and she softened beneath him. Letting go of her hands, he moved down her neck, kissing her throat. His hands fondled her breasts and his lips moved to find a nipple. His mouth closed over her breast, sucking, gently scrubbing the nipple with his tongue, and sending sparks crackling through every nerve ending. She let out a slight moan and speared her fingers through his hair. He licked and nipped his way down her belly, stopping to tease her navel with his tongue, before continuing downward to the silkiness between her legs.

Scotty pushed her legs farther apart with his hands and kissed the inside of her thighs. She suddenly felt the wetness of his tongue invade her. She tried to arch up to him but he held her firm. She groaned at the sensation of him flicking and teasing the peak of her sex. She closed her eyes, sighing as he opened her gently, and she felt his fingers slide inside her, stroking her in the most intimate way. The dark thrills passing through her were so intense; it was almost too much for her. She tried to push his head away but he clamped down on her nub, sucking and tonguing her without mercy. She let out a loud cry as she climaxed and pulled at the sheets with her hands. Scotty let go of her as her body jerked, and began kissing his way back up until they were face to face again.

"You surrender?" he asked with mock sternness.

"Never," she sassed back.

Cathleen lifted her head to kiss him and she tasted herself on his mouth. He cradled her head in one hand, twisting his fingers in her hair and lifted one of her legs, hooking it behind his back. He drew his hips back, pushed forward, and entered her with one quick motion. She gasped at the sudden fullness she felt, and wrapped her other leg around his waist, locking her feet together. Scotty started to slowly grind against her. "How bout now?" he rasped.

She arched her hips to catch his rhythm, grasping on to any part of him her hands could reach. She dug her nails into his back and clawed at him. She felt his muscles tightening beneath her hands. Scotty gave a little grunt and buried his face down into her neck, whispering, "Come for me."

Another rush of intoxicating need and anticipation swept through her as a second orgasm built deep inside her belly, and she rocked harder against him.

She heard him tell her to open her eyes and she looked up at him. His eyes were dark and liquid, and she thought for a moment that he would grind her to oblivion. The thrill of release took her away and she called out his name as she came. Scotty lifted her legs over his shoulders and pressed them tight against her chest. She clenched around him, destroying the last of his self-control. He drove himself deep and came, kissing her hard on the mouth. Letting her legs fall back down to his sides, he collapsed on top of her, panting and pulsing inside her. He lay there with his face buried in the curve of her neck, and she stroked his hair, floating in contentment.

"Mercy," she whispered hoarsely.

He lifted his head to look at her and laughed, "Paybacks a bitch, aye?"


	13. Chapter 13

13.

The last thing Cathleen thought of before being beamed aboard The Enterprise, was how badly she wanted to go to him. Scotty was sitting just one seat in front of her, and yet he seemed so far away.

She didn't want to die. She didn't want to burn alive. The cabin of The Galileo was already un-Godly hot, and quickly filling with noxious vapors as the craft started to burn in a decaying orbit. All Cathleen could think about was how she had never actually told Scotty how much she loved him, and now she was certain, she would never get the chance.

Scotty had asked her not to go. He had warned her that quasars could be extremely unstable. But she hadn't gone on any landing parties since she had been assigned to The Enterprise, and was excited to find her name on the duty roster for the expedition. To ease his own mind about her safety, Scotty swapped out with another crew member so he could join the landing party and be with her. At the time she thought he was being a little overprotective.

Things had turned sour right away and in the end they had crash landed, lost two crew members, and barely got themselves back into orbit. Now as she started to cough from the acrid fumes, she wished she had listened to him in the first place. She wished she were safe again in his arms on The Enterprise.

Cathleen reached out blindly through the thick smoke to feel for his hand. She wanted to touch him one last time, even if it was only to squeeze his fingers. At least he would know she was with him to the end.

Suddenly she felt the familiar tingle of being transported, and the next thing she saw, were the relieved faces of Lieutenants Leslie, Galloway and Dr.M'Benga. The Enterprise had seen the blazing trail The Galileo left behind when Commander Spock had jettisoned the remaining fuel. The ship's scanners had been able to lock on to them, and they were beamed aboard. It had been a huge gamble, but there they were, standing on the transporter pad, alive.

Dr. M'Benga ordered everyone to Sickbay to be treated for smoke inhalation and any other injuries. As Cathleen stepped off the transporter pad, she suddenly felt very lightheaded, and her knees trembled violently. She felt an arm span her waist, offering much needed support, and she looked up to see Scotty. He gave her a weak smile and walked with her, arm in arm to Sickbay.

They were all scanned, given oxygen, and patched up. After a couple hours of observation, they were all released and given orders to rest for 24 hours. Scotty and Cathleen left sickbay together hand in hand and headed straight to his quarters without a word between them.

Scotty unlocked his door and she followed him inside. He went straight to the liquor cabinet and poured them each a drink. He took a sip of his scotch and handed the other glass to her. Cathleen held the glass in her hand, looking at the amber colored alcohol, and brought it to her lips. She sipped it first and then slugged it back, feeling the burn of the liquid travel down her throat. Scotty took the glass from her and set it down with his own. He turned to her with a look of weariness and something else, _understanding? _She went to him and buried her face in the solidness of his chest. A sudden and overwhelming flood of emotions took over and she sobbed against him. She wept for her dead crewmates, she wept for being so naive as to think nothing bad would ever happen to her. And she wept over the fear she felt when she thought for that brief time on the shuttle, that she would never be with him again.

Scotty held her there and stroked her hair. "There, there, lass, everything is alright now."

Cathleen looked up at his face and he wiped the tears and sooty grime away with his thumbs.

"I'm sorry," she offered in a shaky voice.

"Sorry for what?"

"I'm sorry for not listening to you, I'm sorry for not trusting you to know better, and I'm sorry I never told you I loved you before."

He looked at her for a moment, considering what she had just said, and in his soothing way offered her his own thoughts.

"I love you too, Cathleen. I don't know what I would have done if something had happened to ye on that God forsaken planet. But I'm proud of ye because ye did yer job well and ye held it together." He kissed her and she laid her head against his chest again and listened to his heartbeat as he continued, "Some genius once said, 'Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.' That's what we signed up for, lass. That's why we join Starfleet, that's why we shoot for the stars. And we live, and we laugh, and we love, and we never stop questioning."

She nodded in understanding and he said, "Now, I don't know about you, but I could use a bath."

While Scotty filled the tub, Cathleen grabbed two beers out of the mini-fridge in the kitchen alcove and joined him. They stripped and he sat against the back of the tub, allowing her to position herself in front of him. She leaned back against his chest and sighed, feeling the hot water pull the tension out of her bone-tired body. When the tub was full and water threatened to slop over the sides, Scotty kicked the faucet off with his foot. They washed and soaked, drinking their beers, and talked about happier things until the water turned tepid.

They didn't make love that night. Instead, he gave her a t-shirt and a pair of shorts and she climbed into his bed. She slept in his arms; exactly where she wanted to be, safe and loved.


	14. Chapter 14

Okay, okay, okay you pervs! Here is the smut you requested. All of the guilty parties who's names should not be mentioned (*coff* JR, Ian, Marla, and so on) that have been bugging me for more should be happy for now.

I have no idea anymore where this story is going. The plot is starting to go all over the place but I'm having fun with it. I really like this pairing and I hate to break them up. So it might go a little AU so I can forget all about Palamas and Romiane and keep playing. I hope you all don't mind. I would be open to suggestions however if you want to PM me about it.

I have to admit, writing this one made me blush so don't blame me if you need a cold shower when you're done reading. You asked for it!

I only wish I owned Star Trek. But alas, I don't. And if you're under 18, look away now before I warp your fragile little mind!

Thanks Karen for reminding me to write what makes me happy.

Now, on with the SMUT!

* * *

A few days after the the shuttle crash, Cathleen was on the bridge in the middle of a shift change. Scotty handed the conn back to Captain Kirk just as Commander Spock reported for duty.

McCoy and Kirk seemed to be conspiring together at the commander's chair. The crew went silent and Spock looked around with a little self-consciousness as he took his seat at his station. Kirk practicaly lept from his seat to approach him.

"Mister Spock, " Kirk said, leaning against the science console.

"Captain."

"There's really something I don't understand about all of this. Maybe you can explain it to me. Logically, of course. When you jettisoned the fuel and ignited it, you knew there was virtually no chance of it being seen, yet you did it anyhow. That would seem to me to be an act of desperation."

"Quite correct, Captain," replied the Vulcan.

"Now we all know, and I'm sure the doctor will agree with me, that desperation is a highly emotional state of mind. How does your well-known logic explain that?" It was clear the captain was enjoying himself.

Spock tried to explain it away. "Quite simply, Captain. I examined the problem from all angles, and it was plainly hopeless."

Uhura looked back at Cathleen who was standing behind her and gave her a knowing look. It almost seemed to convey, _Would you listen to this shit? _Cathleen bit back a smile.

Spock continued, "Logic informed me that under the circumstances, the only possible action would have to be one of desperation. Logical decision, logically arrived at."

"Ah..ha..ha..ha...I see. Kirk crossed his arms and smirked. "You mean you reasoned that it was time for an emotional outburst."

Spocks eyebrows furrowed and he danced around the point the captain was trying to make. "Well, I wouldn't put it in exactly those terms, Captain, but those are essentially the facts."

Dr. McCoy rolled his eyes and Kirk put his arm around the back of Spock's chair, leaning closer to needle him further. "You're not going to admit that for the first time in your life, you committed a purely human emotional act?"

Spock shook his head and crossed his arms in denial. His brow rose. "No, sir."

This made McCoy and Kirk chuckle. Kirk's smile grew bigger until the dimples formed on his face and he goaded Spock one more time. "Mister Spock, you're a stubborn man."

Both eyebrows raised until Spocks eyes widened. "Yes, sir," Spock finally admitted.

They all laughed for a moment save Spock, who refused to acknowledge the humor before the captain dismissed Cathleen and Scotty from the Bridge.

Cathleen planned on stopping to eat before heading down to Engineering and she invited Scotty to join her. Although the incident with the Galileo had left her still feeling a little unerved about her own mortality, she was relieved and happy in the fact that she had finally told Scotty how she felt about him.

However, sitting across from him in the mess hall, she couldn't help but notice he seemed moody and quiet. Too quiet. Everytime she caught him looking at her, he held a strange expression on his face and would quickly look away. She wondered what was wrong. She had hoped that most of the barriers between them were finally gone. But she decided the mess hall was probably not the best place for confrontaion. She let it go for the time being and figured she would ask him about it later.

After they finished eating, they headed down to Engineering to finish their shift. As she walked beside him she studied him again. She didn't know where his mind was at the moment but she knew it wasn't on her. She reached up to smooth a curl that had flipped up on the back of his head.

"Your hair is out of regs, Mr. Scott. You need a haircut," she teased, trying to persuade him into a lighter mood.

Scotty stopped dead in his tracks and stared hard at her. " I need a shag _Yeoman Mears_," he replied very bluntly.

Cathleen's jaw dropped in shock at what he said. "Scotty!"

"Well? What are ye plannin' on doin' about it?"

She realized the look on his face was one of sexual frustration and barely managed to stiffle a laugh. It would not be a good time to laugh at Mr. Scott. She tried to think fast.

He shifted his stance and placed his fists on his hips, waiting for her to reply. Feeling a little intimidated, she took a step back nearly bumping into a storage compartment door behind her.

"Well....uhh... we'll be off duty in a couple hours. I could grab a change of clothes and meet you at your place later.....if you want."

He strode over to where she was standing and planted a kiss that nearly took her breath away. He reached out to the keypad above her shoulder and punched a code to open the compartment, hustling her inside.

"Are you nuts?" Cathleen hissed as he locked them inside the darkened storage compartment. "Someone may have just seen us."

"I don't care." His arms closed around her, jerking her body against his. The movement startled her and she let out a tiny eep.

"I had to sit on that bridge all morning and pretend not to notice everyone _leerin'_ at ye." He kissed the small scar on her cheek and nuzzled her hair, taking in her scent.

"Don't be silly," she said shortly. "No one was leering at me."

Scotty ran his hand down her back to the hem of her uniform skirt, pushing it up and letting the palm of his hand rest on her bottom. He squeezed her buttcheek and she jumped. "I know a leer when I see one, lass."

A strange feeling of alarm filled Cathleen as she saw the sexual heat in his dark copper gaze, and felt the aggressive male energy emanate from his body. She knew she was in serious trouble and she tried to talk him down.

"Scotty, what has gotten in to you.." she started to ask, but was cut short when he bent his head to drag his lips over the exposed skin of her chest.

"Stop," she whispered, shivering at the persistent stroke of his tongue against her neck and ear. "We'll get caught….oohhh.. oh, my God…oh, don't _do_ that,… I bet there's a recorder in here somewhere." Her eyes darted around the compartment, looking for a recording device in the dim light.

"I can't help it.... _Mmm_, ye smell so good.... I just wanna bite ye like an apple." His voice was low and gruff, his breath hot and rushing against her skin. He pulled her tightly against him and kissed her, his mouth searching, his hips pressing against her. He pulled at her brief bottoms and shoved his hand inside her panties. She gasped when his fingers slid between her thighs, fondling the soft flesh until she was wet and squirmming desperately.

"Not now," she pleaded. "We're expected in Engineering. You can wait till we're off duty."

"No....huh uh...no, I can't." He dropped to his knees and lifted each of her legs to free them from boots and nylons, kissing and licking her thighs. He stood up again, urging her against the bulkhead, and then fumbled with the fly of his uniform pants. Cathleen's panic was flooded with a surge of desire she could not control as her body betrayed her mind. His mouth drifted to her throat, and then wandered back to her lips. She gave in, helplessly surrendering to his demanding hands.

She whimpered his name again in a last ditch effort to stop him, but his mouth smothered her protests. Against her better judgment, and much to her despair, she could not resist the naughtiness of it. She kissed him back, opening to him, letting him push her thighs apart with his leg.

His erection nudged against her and she flexed her hips to accommodate him. He pushed inside, entering her with a deep glide. Cathleen moaned and her body clamped tightly around the sudden invasion.

Scotty caught her under one knee, hitched her leg over his hip, and thrusted higher inside her. She shuddered, locked her body to him, and melted into his relaxed rhythm. Their uniforms rubbed, making a swishing sound, separating them everywhere except for the warm, wet places they were joined. Nothing but cool air and hot, calloused, hands touched her legs and naked bottom.

Cathleen pressed against the bulkhead, her body rising with each upward thrust until only her toes touched the floor. She let him control her, no longer caring about getting caught, conscious only of the way her felt inside her. She was trapped between the cold, hard bulkhead and the warm, hard man who held her against it. The thought of it sent a shock of pleasure rippling through her.

Her arms clung tightly around his neck as he drove her into a screaming orgasm. He hushed her cries with a shaking hand over her mouth. Murmuring wicked things against her neck, he slowed his pace until she was quiet again. Scotty removed his hand, replacing it with firm lips and ground into her again. Possessed with his own primal urge, he buried himself deep inside her. His body shook with his release and he quietly groaned against her mouth.

Scotty held her there against the bulkhead for a moment, kissing her face and lips. Her legs shook against him and he slowly released her, letting her bring her feet back down to the floor.

Scotty straightened his clothes and raised the lights slightly as she rummaged to find her missing uniform pieces on the floor. He crossed his arms, watching her try to right herself and said chuckling, "You better hurry lass, we're expected in Engineering soon."

He ducked in surprise as a size seven ladies boot sailed passed his head.


	15. Chapter 15

Again, not beta'd. Just a little inspired after renewing my CPR credit.

* * *

15.

The Enterprise arrived for an unscheduled layover at Starbase 11 for repairs after a severe ion storm. The storm had been devestating to the ship in two ways. First, it had caused the death of a crew member for which the captain was facing possible court marshal. And second, the storm knocked out quite a bit of the ships power grid, including the transformers.

Cathleen and Scotty were among the crew responsible for the repairs.

That is to say Cathleen was among the crew responsible. Scotty was there because he insisted on supervising, which in Scotty terms meant completing said repairs himself. What he was actually doing was getting in Cathleen's way.

Scotty and Lieutenant Galloway lifted a new transformer into place while she attempted to bolt it down. The chief nit picked at her methods and was making her a nervous wreck. In a way it made her feel as though he thought her work was not to be trusted and it frustrated her. It made her feel inferior. He was also bad about not wearing his protective gear and she had to warn him twice not to touch the power grid. She didn't understand why he was being so careless and for once, as much as she normally enjoyed working beside him, she wished he would go find something else to do.

As an electrician she knew that even though the grid was down, it would still hold a certain amount of voltage. The third time she tried to warn him it was too late and the residual voltage sparked, grabbing Scotty for a moment before throwing him across the compartment.

Cathleen screamed at Dave to get help and ran over to where Scotty was lying on the floor.

She pushed him to his back and gave him a sternum rub with her knuckles. When there was no response she checked for a pulse. Nothing.

_Oh God….oh God….oh God….._

She tipped his head back and pinched his nose shut. Forcing his mouth open with her thumb, she gave two breaths, watching his chest rise. She scooted around to his side, located his solar plexus and positioned her hands squarely over the center of his chest. She pumped, allowing his ribs to spring back up before pumping again.

_One….two…three….four…_

"DAVE WHERE ARE YOU?" she screamed in rhythm with her compressions.

_Nine…ten…eleven…twelve…_

Just as she was reaching a count of thirty, Galloway arrived with a portable defibrillator.

"You know how to use that thing?" He shook his head no.

She gave Scotty two more breaths and snatched the AED from Dave who resumed compressions.

Her shaking hands fumbled with the leads and she couldn't get Scotty's shirt out of the way to connect him. Dave gave her a surprised look as she dug deep into Scotty's pocket. She found the pen knife she was looking for, used the blade to rip an opening in his shirt and tore it away from his chest. Her trembling hands flew as she tore the sticky pads open and slapped them onto his chest and ribcage. She pushed the button and waited for the AED to tell her what to do next.

The computer voice from the AED said, "_Analyzing"_

Then, "_Preparing shock. Move away from the patient."_

Dave and Cathleen scooted away from Scotty.

"_Shock in three….two…one.. Beeeeeeeep!" _Cathleen watched in horror as Scotty's lifeless body seized and then relaxed.

"_Shock delivered. You may resume cardio pulmonary resuscitation now." _

She gave two more breaths and switched off with Dave on the compressions when the medical crew burst through the door.

Dr. McCoy shouted at them. "What the hell happened here?"

Dave began to explain as Lieutenant Brent and Nurse Chapel took over CPR.

"He touched the power grid, Sir. Bit him pretty hard."

Dr. McCoy was administering something from a hypospray into Scotty's chest.

"He wasn't breathing so we started CPR. The AED gave him one shock just before you got here."

The doctor waved his medi-corder over Scotty's chest and said, "Well, he's got a pulse now. Let's bag him and get him down to Sickbay."

They all lifted Scotty to a gurney and Nurse Chapel placed and ambu-bag over his face, squeezing it as she walked along side them until they reached Sickbay.

The medics took Scotty into triage with Dr. McCoy, leaving the two engineers alone in a waiting area.

Dave paged a couple of their engineering gang down to Sickbay to wait with them and sagged into a chair next to Cathleen.

"What do you think is going to happen to him, Cathy?"

"If you're asking whether I think he'll live the answer is yes. But I don't know how bad he's hurt." She picked at her nails, concentrating on not crying. She would do that later after she made sure he was alright.

"You told the idiot not to touch the grid. Twice."

"He's not an idiot," she said a little too sharply. "He's brilliant." She softened her tone. "He just got distracted that's all."

"You really love him don't you?"

Cathleen thought for a moment about everything she and Scotty had been through in the short time since their affair began. How he had laughed with her, comforted her, teased at her, made love to her, made her happy. She didn't care who knew about her feelings for him anymore.

"Yeah.... Yeah Dave, I really do."

Kevin and Ed walked in to Sickbay just as Nurse Chapel came out to speak to them. They all crowded around her to hear the news about their chief. Good, bad, or ugly they were there for Scotty.

"Well, the good news is, he's stable," she said. "The bad news is, he has a concussion and his hand and feet were burnt from the shock. Dr. McCoy will keep him here a day or two and watch him, make sure he's okay. He's not awake yet, but you can go in and see him. One at a time though, and keep it short. He needs his rest."

Kevin spoke up. "If he's sleeping we'll come back later. Cathy why don't you go ahead. I bet he'll want to see you when he wakes up."

The guys left and Cathleen followed Nurse Chapel into Scotty's room. She went in quietly to stand next to his bed across from Dr. McCoy, who was adjusting medications.

He looked up at her and smiled. "I guess this thistle head has you to thank for saving his life?"

"It was the adrenalin."

"Well, then he can thank your adrenalin glands. You did a good job Yeoman Mears. I'd take you as a medic any day."

"Is he really going to be okay?" she asked.

"He'll be fine in a few days. The burns will have to be taken care of to prevent infection and his joints will be sore for awhile from the macroshock. He'll have one hell of a headache, but he'll make it. He always does."

He gestured to the water pitcher on the stand next to the bed. "He can have something to drink when he wakes up."

"Thank you Doctor."

"No. Thank you, little lady," he said and left her alone with Scotty.

Cathleen pulled a chair over next to his bed and sat down. She took his bandaged hand and kissed it. She laid her head on his chest as best she could and listened to him breathe. An hour ago she was breathing for him. The thought overwhelmed her and she started to cry.

"Shhhhhh…ye'll wake the patient," he croaked, startling her.

She choked back a sob and turned it into a laugh, wiping the tears with her sleeve. "You scared the hell out of me."

She got up to get him some water.

"I scared the hell outta me. What happened?"

She let him sip while she explained. "I told ya not to touch the grid. TWICE! And ya touched it!"

"Maybe next time I'll listen to my crew for a change."

"If you wear protection like I told you, there won't have to be a next time."

"Ye sound so much like a wife. Maybe I should marry ye."

Her heart dropped into the pit of her stomache. He couldn't be serious. "Scotty I...."

"There's a reason I can't do it and I want ye to know why. Ye may think ye know, but ye don't."

"Scotty, you don't have to..."

"No, listen to me, cause what I'm about to say might change things. If we were married they'd make ye leave the ship. They'd either transfer ye or they'd make ye leave Starfleet. Either way, we'd be separated. I don't know how ye feel about it, I guess I should have asked before now. I love ye and I'd marry ye in a hearbeat if I could. But I'd rather have ye here with me and carry on the way we do, than get married and be separated from ye.

Once again, Scotty had managed to render her speechless. She didn't know how she felt about it even if she could tell him.

He reached out and drew her to him in his warm embrace and kissed her.

"I know I'm being a selfish bastard, but I want my cake and I wanna eat it too," he added in a wearied voice.

He was right and she knew it. They were pushing the envelope already as it was. Starfleet would indeed separate a married couple. She had seen it happen all too many times before as cruel as it was. And as much as it saddened her to think they would never take that one,last step together, she made her choice right then. She would stay with him and ride that train as long as she could before it crashed and burned.

She sat up and looked him in the eyes and said the only thing that seemed appropriate.

"Yes."


	16. Chapter 16

I don't usually like changing POV's in the middle of a story but it was suggested I try it just to see if I could pull it off. And since this whole fan fic thing is a way for me to flex my brain, I figured, what the hell.....

This one gets rather..........steamy. LOL!

Lemme know what ya think!

* * *

16.

Dr. McCoy kept Scotty in Sickbay for three more days before deciding to allow him to recover in his own quarters. He did not however, release the injured man back to regular duty.

Instead, against Scotty's protests, he ordered rest and light activity for an additional ten days until a follow up evaluation could be made.

Scotty swore to the doctor he would behave himself but McCoy, knowing Scotty all too well, wasn't buying it.

"Mr. Scott, as I see it you have two choices. You can either stay in Sickbay for the better part of the next two weeks. Or, you can rest in your quarters and maybe enjoy some time at Starbase 11 with that sweet little gal you've taken up with."

As much as Scotty hated to admit it, the pain from his body only proved the doctor's point. The electrical shock he received from the power grid left muscles and joints sore enough that he struggled to dress himself. The burns on his hand and feet were so severe that Dr. McCoy was still concerned Scotty might lose a finger or toe, and Scotty knew it would make walking or handling tools very uncomfortable. He couldn't imagine how he might feel without the medications McCoy prescribed.

The thought of shacking up with Cathleen for a few days was another reason he didn't fight doctor's orders. He could have her all to himself and it would give him a chance to find out, exactly from her perspective, what happened. Lieutenant Galloway had explained to him Cathleen's roll in the incident and even though he knew she would have done the same for any of her shipmates, he wanted to thank her more appropriately in private.

Whatever happened, he knew that it scared her badly enough to be reluctant to leave him alone in Sickbay. And it had been serious enough, that even with all the repairs under way, Command was willing to allow her to take leave and help him for a few days. He could only guess McCoy had something to do with that.

Scotty couldn't help but smile as soon as Cathleen walked into Sickbay where she promised to meet him. The way she always made him feel so cared for and at ease, it was impossible not to. He was glad she was there to listen to Nurse Chapel prattle on about wound care and medications, he was so relieved to be leaving Sickbay; he could hardly concentrate on anything else. He fought the impulse to pull Cathleen into his arms and hold her there, stroke her hair, kiss her. That would have to wait till later.

Cathleen helped Scotty hobble down to his quarters, chatting away about how his crew was picking up the slack in Engineering during his absence. It made him feel a little proud to hear about their loyalty to him. It also made him feel guilty, and he realized that if he was to stay away from work, he would probably have to leave the ship.

By the time they arrived at his quarters, Scotty was feeling his injuries a little more. He didn't bother turning the lights up, but moved stiffly to his bed to lie down, covering his eyes with his forearm.

He felt Cathleen's presence beside him and she asked, "Do you want something to eat? Or, some tea?"

"No lass, I just need a rest and then maybe a shower."

Cathleen sat at the foot of his bed and began to gingerly remove the shoes and socks he was given to wear in Sickbay. Scotty peeked from under his arm to watch her. Her narrow shoulders flexed as her small hands worked at the laces, loosening them so the shoes wouldn't pull too hard on his wounds. She peeled his socks off and stared at the artificial skin-like bandages wedged between and wrapped around his toes.

"Don't mind that right now, lass. Come up here for a kiss and a cuddle."

Cathleen crawled up next to him on the bed. Scotty turned to his side and gathered her against him, breathing in her baby-soft scent. Her lips pecked softly at his jaw line. He needed this and he needed Cathleen. He loved her, it was undeniable. She had turned his life upside down. He had been responsible and careful all his life until she came along. With her he felt peaceful and free. And maybe just a little bit wreckless.

_My sweet Cathleen._ It stirred his heart.

"Mmmmm....That's what the doctor ordered," he murmured into her hair.

She giggled and pressed herself closer. "I doubt it, but I missed this while you were in Sickbay."

"Tell me what happened."

He felt her body stiffen. "Dave already told you what happened," she replied.

"I want to hear yer side of it."

"I don't like to talk about it Scotty. It bothers me to think of you lying there almost dead on the floor."

She was becoming visibly upset now. It almost broke his heart to think he had unnecessarily put her through something so traumatic that she couldn't tell him the details of it. A wave of protectiveness washed over him. He wanted to take care of her, this free-spirited woman that loved him, wanted him, and challenged him. He tenderly swept her hair away from her eyes and kissed her until he felt her relax again.

"Ye don't have to tell me anything right now. I can read yer report later."

"Good. Now go take your shower. You smell like Sickbay."

"Only if ye'll help me, Yeoman Mears." He kissed his favorite place; a small patch of the softest skin just behind her ear. She shivered against him.

"It would be my pleasure, Mr. Scott."

Scotty eased himself up from the bed and followed her to the bathroom. It felt refreshingly odd having her help him remove his clothes and bandages, and then help him get into the shower. He felt his sore muscles relax almost instantly under the hot water. He tilted his head back, and then she was there; her fingers raking through his wet hair. He stepped away from the shower stream and allowed her to wash his hair. Her fingers and nails felt wonderful scrubbing his scalp. He rinsed his hair and she lathered a wash cloth and began washing him from head to toe, careful not to disturb his wounds.

When she finished washing him, she pushed him back under the stream to rinse off. He snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her to him, kissing her as the hot water washed over them. His tongue danced with hers. Her body pressed against him. Heat pulsed in his veins and he felt himself harden against the softness of her belly. It amazed Scotty to think something as simple as a shower could seem so deliciously erotic.

He took the soapy wash cloth that she was still barely clinging to and turned her away from him.

"My turn," he said kissing her neck.

Cathleen leaned back against his chest and closed her eyes. He opened the wash clothes against his palm, the soap stinging his burnt fingers slightly, and began to work on her belly. He steadied her against him with one arm and washed very meticulously, moving his hand over her belly and breasts in a circular motion. He lifted each of her arms and washed downwards, stroking her sides all the way down to her thighs. He switched hands and she made soft noises when his fingers glided between her legs. She was soapy and soft and she became slick as his fingers stroked and teased the hot folds of her flesh. Cathleen reached up with one hand, pulled his head down level with hers and kissed him. She moaned against his lips, "I want you."

"I didn't get to wash yer back," he said smirking.

"I don't care," she answered, turning under the shower to rinse quickly.

In the next instant the water was off and they rubbed each other dry with clean towels. Scotty forgot for a brief moment the pain he was in as he chased her to the bed. She pulled the covers down and crawled onto the bed leaving him room to get in next to her. But when he went to position himself over her and winced, she stopped him.

"Allow me, Mr. Scott."

She leaned over him and ran her tongue over his chest, around one nipple and then the next. His hands flexed and it took every bit of whatever self-control he had not to take her right then. His muscles flinched as she traced slow, lazy circles down his stomach. Her hot breath puffed against his skin and her delicate hands rambled over his chest and thighs. He felt like she was touching him everywhere and nowhere all at once.

"Oh..Gah..." A catch of sound came from his throat as she swiped at his hard shaft with her tongue. He sucked in a sharp breath and groaned when she took him in her mouth. His eyes rolled back, and his breath came faster.

"What have ye done to me?" he whispered in a ragged voice.

He felt the tension rise in his body and knew he couldn't take much more.

"Cathleen," he gasped. "Please stop. I'm not gonna last if ye don't."

Cathleen did as he asked and moved over his thighs, straddling him. Scotty caressed the small of her back and the curves of her bottom. She rose up and guided him into her, sinking down until he was deep inside her.

Her eyes were intent on his as she started to move. First slowly and deliberately, then as she perfected her rhythm, she rose and fell faster. He ran his hands up to her breasts and cupped them. She covered them with her own and took them away, kissing his palms, guiding them where she wanted his touch. Faster and harder she rocked against him. He arched his hips and met her stroke for stroke. His heartbeat pounded in his ears and he felt her tighten around him in a long, explosive orgasm that swept from her body through his. Her knees dug into his sides and she cried out. He shuddered from his own release and wondered if he would die right there, a happy man.

They collapsed together in a heap and lay heaving, still joined. He wasn't ready to withdraw from her yet; didn't want it to end. Truth be told, he wasn't sure he had the strength left to move.

She finally sighed and raised herself to look down at him. She smiled. The smile of a satisfied woman, a woman well loved. He pulled her back down and kissed her. He rolled to lay beside her, drawing her back into his arms. Scotty felt her wedge herself intimately against his thigh.

He chuckled, "Ye're gonna be the death of me, woman." She kissed him and he realized he could be content to lay like that with her forever.

_But what a wonderful way to go...._


	17. Chapter 17

Sorry for the delay with this update. My step-daughter had a baby girl and my house suddenly grows smaller. I'm sure you all understand.

These last few chapters come from the heart.

* * *

17.

Not long after Scotty's dance with the power grid and a few days after his release from Sickbay, he asked Cathleen if she wanted to take some leave and go home for awhile. Cathleen was taken by surprise but she understood why Scotty would want to leave the ship. It was hard for him to watch the repairs going on without being able to take part in the whole operation. And he had been ordered to rest not only by Dr. McCoy but also by Captain Kirk. It wasn't that Captain Kirk didn't want Scotty around for the repairs, it was that he wanted him healthy. Not only physically but also mentally.

Cathleen wasn't sure if Scotty meant for them to go to Aberdeen or somehwere else for that matter and was even more surprised when he suggested they take the few days they were given to head back to Ohio. But she didn't waste time fussing about it. Instead she comm'd her mother on subspace, packed her bags and headed out on a space hop with her man.

She was nervous. But not because she thought Scotty wouldn't like her parents or even that her parents wouldn't like Scotty. She was more afraid that he would absolutely hate Ohio. It had been known to happen and she understood why. Most people thought of Ohio as a hick state with nothing to do or see. But Cathleen had lived there all her life untill Starfleet and loved the quietness of her little country town with the drive-in rootbeer stand where the kids hung out Friday nights after the football game, or The Spot Coffee Shop where the adults in town congregated to gossip about local news and politics. Cathleen couldn't help but want Scotty to love that place just as much as she did.

Soon after a long sixteen hours of travel, they found themselves standing on the back porch of her childhood home, looking in through the screen door at her smiling mother and father, Ian and Gail Mears.

"Come in! Come in! What are you silly kids doing standing there on the porch? You're just in time for dinner," her mother gushed. Gail Mears was always known for her warm hospitality and Cathleen knew by the way her mother was looking at Scotty with shining blue eyes, that she had found someone to dote on. Whether Scotty needed doting on or not.

Gail hugged them both and introductions were made to her father.

"Mr. Mears," Scotty said smiling as he shook Ian's hand.

"Mr. Scott," Ian returned the greeting with a firm grip.

"Please, call me Scotty."

Cathleen watched both men's reaction as Ian quickly sized him up, decided he might like him, and insisted that Scotty call him Ian. Then he left them with Gail, taking their bags himself to Cathleen's old bedroom.

After dinner Cathleen helped her mother clear away the dishes and the women stepped out on to the front porch to find Scotty chatting with her father.

"Your friend here tells me he's an engineer like you on the Enterprise, Kitcat." Ian struck a match and puffed deeply on his pipe, lighting the tobacco and blowing the sweet, fragrant smoke out of the side of his mouth. He moved over so his wife could take a seat next to him on the porch swing.

Cathleen leaned against the porch railing next to Scotty's chair. "We work in the same section but Scotty's being modest Daddy. He's the _chief _engineer, not a lowly electrician like me."

Ian looked at Scotty over the frames of his bi-focals. "That so?" he asked.

"Aye," answered Scotty. "But don't let her fool ye. She does her job well and she ranks pretty high in my book."

"Well in that case," her father said proudly, " I taught her everything she knows."

"Dad!" Cathleen smiled and Ian gave her a wink.

She turned and looked out across the yard. As the sun began it's evening descent behind a corn field, the fireflies were beginning their nightly blinking rituals. A humid haze seemed to rise from the ground as the air cooled.

"It's a nice night for a walk, Cathy," her mother suggested.

Cathleen shifted her gaze to Scotty. "Wanna go for a walk?"

"Aye, it'll give me a chance to work off that lovely dinner."

Gail blushed. "He's a charmer," she said softly to Cathleen as she bent down to kiss her parents goodnight. "You have no idea, Mom."

She led Scotty by the hand as they left the porch and started across the yard.

"Watch out for those bears out there Kitcat!" her father called after them.

Cathleen turned and asked, "Daddy, when are you gonna stop calling me Kitcat?"

Her father chuckled and toked on his pipe. "The day you stop calling me Daddy, Kitcat."

The couple walked down through the dusky orchard, Cathleen leading the way with Scotty traipsing behind. He wasn't saying much but she could hear the gears turning in his head as they walked. In true Scotty fashion, he was busy taking it all in.

They found the blackberry bramble growing along the split rail fence and picked a few berries, eating them until their fingers were stained from the juice.

Scotty asked about the property and she explained as she hitched herself up on the fence, that it has been in her father's family for generations.

"So you grew up here then?" Scotty wedged himself between her knees where she was sitting on the fence rail and leaned his back against her.

"Yeah, pretty much. We moved in when my grandfather died to help my grandma. I think I was about five. Then when grandma died my father inherited. None of his brothers wanted to live here." She kissed the top of his head and rubbed his shoulders. " I don't think Jeff does either. He likes to visit, but he's happy where he is in Seattle. I could probably buy him out. If or when the time comes."

They stayed that way for a minute taking in the night scenery and listening to the crickets serenade.

"Ya like it here?" she asked and he nodded.

"Good!" She pushed him off and jumped down the other side of the fence. "Let's go. I've got something I've been dying to show you since we got here."

He climbed after her. "It's not a bear, is it?"

She laughed and grabbed his hand, pulling him along.

They reached the barn and she went in and flipped a light on. Scotty waited for her while she grabbed a flashlight and some old towels her father kept around. They were worn and ugly but they would serve her purpose. Scotty saw what she was carrying and gave her a strange look. Cathleen grabbed his hand and urged him to follow.

She flipped on the flashlight when they reached the tree line at the back of the property. The light beamed down on a path that was cut through the pines and worn from years of travel.

Scotty hesitated at going in to the darkened woods and she tugged at him. "Come on, ya big chicken. There's no bears in this area - anymore. My dad just says that because it was the only way he could get me to come inside at night when I was a kid."

They traveled downhill for a minute and the pine trees opened up into a clearing with a pond. There was a small pebble bank so a person could walk in and out of the water without trudging through muck. There was also a little dock to jump off.

"This used to be a cattle pond when my grandpa lived here and when he got too old to deal with cows, my dad and uncles made it into a swimming hole."

Cathleen threw the towels and the flashlight down and started shucking clothes. Scotty stared at her in disbelief.

She stood stark naked in the bright moonlight and looked back at him. "Come on, get naked! You know ya want to."

She ran off the dock, jumping into the water. As her body sliced through the water, the temperature sent a shock through her. She had forgotten just how cold the spring-fed pond was. She knew if she let on about it, he'd never get in. Cathleen set her jaw so her teeth would not chatter, rubbed the water from her eyes and searched for him. He was sitting on the end of the dock taking his shoes and socks off. He stood and stripped off his jeans and t-shirt, hesitating before removing his shorts.

She silently tread water and watched him walk to the end of the dock. She had seen him naked many times before but in the moonlight his nude form was something to appreciate. Cathleen was willing to bet that with his build, he could have been a prize fighter at one time.

He took a deep breath and jumped in feet first just inches away from her. He bobbed back to the surface, gasping from the impact of the freezing water.

"Cold?" She giggled.

"Blood...d...ddy h..h..hell!" Was all he could manage through clacking teeth. She giggled.

Cathleen floated past him on her back. Compared to the lingering heat and humidity of the day, the water felt exhilarating on her skin. It seeped through her hair and made her scalp tingle. "You know, it's not so bad once ya get used to it."

"I'll r..r..remember tha..t when they're t....t...treatin' us f...f...for hypoth..th..thermia."

"Don't be such a baby."

Scotty dog-paddled over to a spot where he could find his feet and Cathleen followed, tickling his bottom and startling him. He flipped his hand on the surface of the water and splashed her face. She retaliated by shoving a small sunami right back at him. He grabbed her and threw her across the water. Cathleen came back up sputtering, caught her breath and dove back under, knocking him off his feet. Scotty came back up behind her and before she could assult him again he turned her by her shoulders and locked his arms around her.

He shook his head, flicking water from his hair at her and asked, "Now what're ye gonna do? Ye're trapped."

"Oh no," she feigned dispair. "What shall I do?" She wriggled against him untill he allowed her to put her arms around his neck and kissed him slowly and sweetly. She couldn't believe they were really there. At her farm in Ohio, skinny dipping in her pond.

After a few moments, she heard sirens wailing in the distance. And as they grew closer, she had no idea that her life was about to change forever.


	18. Chapter 18

18.

When the sirens grew even louder, it dawned on Cathleen the emergency was at her house. She broke away from Scotty and trudged through the water toward the bank.

"Something's wrong!" she yelled over her shoulder to Scotty.

Cathleen started to run for the house before she realized she wasn't wearing any clothes. She stopped just long enough to barely dry herself off and tug her jeans and t-shirt over her damp skin. As she struggled, she saw that Scotty was out of the water and doing the same. She never noticed the dirt and grass sticking to her feet when she jammed her shoes on- minus socks.

Cathleen started running back up the hill and turned back just long enough to make sure Scotty was following then broke in to a dead run all the way back to the house.

An ambulance was parked in the drive and she came to a stop next to her father. Paramedics were loading her mother into the back of the vehicle and asking her father questions.

He looked at Cathleen with an expression she rarely ever saw. Fear.

"Dad, what happened? What's wrong with mom?" she asked, still panting.

"I don't know honey, she just collapsed. They're taking her to Memorial Hospital," he answered and climbing in with the paramedic.

"Do you want me to follow in the car?"

He shouted over the clamor of doors banging shut, "Do whatever you want, I'm going with her!"

Cathleen stood and watched the ambulance pull out of the drive. The siren wailed again as it sped down the road.

She looked behind her, only then realizing that Scotty had caught up to her, supporting himself with his hands on his knees. He was out of breath but in his grip were her panties, bra and socks.

"Damn……woman…..ye run fast," he said panting. "What…..happened?"

She was still breathing pretty hard herself but she answered with the only information she had.

"Dad said Mom collapsed…..We have to get to the hospital."

Scotty nodded and straightened himself. "Let's go."

Cathleen went into the house and found her mother's purse in the same place Gail always kept it; on the buffet. She dug through it to find car keys, hoping her father hadn't taken them by mistake. When she didn't find them she began to panic.

"I can't find the god damned keys…..WHERE THE FUCK ARE HER GOD DAMNED KEYS!"

Scotty came to her side and calmly took the purse from her hands. He gave it a shake and the keys jingled from somewhere inside. He reached his hand in, pulled them out, shook them and said, "Keys."

Next he dug out a phone and handed that to her. "Ye should call yer brother."

She hadn't used an actual phone since she left Earth on The Enterprise and fumbled with it as she walked out to the car. Scotty opened the passenger door for her saying, "I'll drive, and you talk to yer brother."

She looked at him in astonishment. He was so calm. "You can drive?" she asked reluctantly.

He smiled. "Lass, if Starfleet can trust me with a multi-billion credit starship, don't ye think I can manage a car?"

She sat down in the seat and buckled her seatbelt. "Well of course you can. I just never thought about it before."

As he pulled out of the driveway she gave him the first set of directions and she found her brother's number in the phone.

Her brother answered on the third ring.

"Hello Mother."

"It's not Mom, Jeff. It's me, Cathy."

"Sis? Why are you calling me on Mom's phone? I thought you were off planet."

Her voice started breaking and her words came out in one long rushed sentence. "I'm home on leave and Mom collapsed and Dad had to call an ambulance and we're going to the hospital right now and I don't know what's wrong with her…..Turn left here, Scotty. That takes you into town….and I thought I better call you…."

"Okay, okay, calm down. Did they take her to Memorial?"

"Yes," she answered her brother and then directed Scotty again, "Turn left again at the light and then follow the blue signs that say H. That means Hospital."

She didn't know if H stood for hospital in Scotland or not but he nodded his head acknowledging her.

"Who are you talking to?" her brother asked.

"Um…well I guess you could say he's my boyfriend. He's driving."

"Okay good. Listen to me…I'll pack a bag and find a flight. You call me as soon as you know anything, okay Sis?"

"Okay."

"I'm sure everything will be fine. Mom's a feisty little scrapper."

"I know, you're probably right. It's probably nothing" she said. She realized she had been holding her breath and let out a deep sigh.

Feeling a bit more reassured, Cathleen said goodbye to her brother and hung up just as they pulled into the hospital parking lot.

They walked in and found her father sitting in a chair with his head in his hands.

"Dad?" Cathleen called out, suddenly fearing the worst.

Ian looked up and clasped his hands together so tight his knuckles turned white. Cathleen ran over and knelt in front of him.

"Dad, where's Mom?" Cathleen asked gently.

He looked at her with deepest sorrow in his brown eyes. His face was red and he shook his head. He opened his mouth to speak but no words would come and he pressed his lips together. She knew it was bad news.

"Is my mother dead?" She couldn't believe she was actually asking him that question.

His answer was barely audible. "I'm sorry."

She blinked. Did she hear him right? Her mother was dead? She didn't know what to say and the only thing that came out of her mouth was a simple, "Oh."

Ian hugged her tightly and repeated, "I'm sorry….I'm so sorry Kitcat." He began to sob.

It was the first time she had ever seen her father cry. And it disturbed her so deeply that it was almost as if she could feel a switch flip inside her. She would be strong. She would take care of everything.

She had to ask, "What happened Daddy?"

"We were getting ready for bed," he said. "She was sitting there saying her back hurt and she felt sick to her stomach. She stood up and took a few steps from the bed. Then she just crumpled to the floor."

He let her go and she moved to sit next to him in a chair. Scotty came to stand beside her but said nothing as Ian continued. "It all happened so fast. The doctor said it was a ruptured artery. He told me the medical term but I don't know what the hell it all means."

A nurse came up to them out of nowhere and said, "You can go in and see her now."

She took them to a small room where a curtain was drawn around a bed. Before she let them in she turned and said, "We cleaned her up the best we could. The tubing and everything will have to stay in until an autopsy is done." Then she added, "I'm very sorry for your loss, Mrs. Mears was a lovely woman."

It was then that Cathleen recognized the nurse as a girl she had gone to high school with and she realized that Diane Whateverherlastnamewas meant what she said.

She let Ian go in first and hid her face in Scotty's embrace when she heard her daddy cry. She wanted to comfort him but she knew that after being married to the same woman for forty years, there was no comfort that Cathleen could give and he deserved a few minutes alone with his wife. Then he came out and walked past them without a word.

Cathleen looked up at Scotty and he whispered, "Ye better go in now, lass."

She walked in slowly, not sure of what to expect. Her own heart pounded and there was a great lump in her throat. She saw her mother there on the bed with a sheet pulled up to her neck; an intubation tube was taped to her mouth. Cathleen reached out and smoothed Gail's auburn hair away from her face. She was still warm. Cathleen half expected her mother to open her eyes and she leaned over to kiss her and cried, "Oh God! Oh God, Mommy…..I love you….I love you."

She walked out to where Scotty was still waiting. She went into his arms and he held her there.

He said, "I'm so sorry Cathleen."

She stopped crying and wiped her eyes with her arm. "I need to call Jeff."

"Okay," he answered letting her go.

She turned to face the wall as if there were a corner there to hide in and dug the phone out of her pocket.

She dialed the number. Her brother answered on the first ring.

"Sis?"

"Jeff…..Mom's gone," she told him flatly. There was a pause on the line.

"You're shitting me," he said with a catch in his voice.

Cathleen ignored the brotherly accusation and said, "Come home, Jeff. I need you."


	19. Chapter 19

19.

By the following morning, and less than twenty-four hours since her daughter arrived home, Gail Mears body was transferred to the local funeral home. Her son Jeff Mears came in from Seattle and her neighbors and friends were already starting the mourning ritual of calling on the house and bringing in food.

After managing to catch a shower and a few hours of sleep, Cathleen woke to find Scotty sleeping soundly next to her. She kissed him gently, slipped out of bed and tiptoed to the bathroom. There was no sense in waking Scotty. There was no place they needed to be and she knew he still needed his rest.

After she dressed, she pulled her hair back into a pony tail and snuck out the backdoor. She knew that eventually she would be expected to greet company as they called to pay their respects to her family. She had no problem with that, but at the moment, she didn't want to be bothered. There were plenty of other things that needed attention on a working farm and she would prioritize them first. Cathleen decided she would start by feeding and taking care of her mother's horses.

The American Paint named Lefty for his blue, left eye and an Appaloosa named Hawkeye, were rescue horses her mother had taken in and adopted from the local animal shelter. The beasts were removed from their original owner due to the farmer's failing health. The horses were older but still ride worthy. The old man simply could not give them the care they required any longer and when Gail read the story in the news, she would not let it go until Ian gave his blessing for her to take in the horses. But that was always like her mother, taking in creatures of all kinds, human, alien or animal, it did not matter.

The work required to care for the horses was consuming but it would give Cathleen the time and peaceful quiet that she needed. She walked into the tack room and flipped on a light. She kicked off her shoes and stepped into a pair of wellies. And then she saw them.

Her mother's gloves, lying on the shelf where she always left them. And then it hit her. What that _it_ was she did not know, but it came at her with the force of a runaway freighter and she could not escape the emotional impact of what was coming down. Her mother was really gone.

Cathleen picked up the gloves and hot tears began to roll down her cheeks at the realization that her mother would never wear them again. It was hard for her to grasp that something as trivial as a pair of gloves would have such an effect on her.

She sat down on an overturned bucket and slipped them on. Her hands were too much like her fathers. Wider at the palm and thicker through the fingers than her mother's had been. But she didn't care if they were tight. They had been Gail's and it made her feel a little closer to her just wearing them.

By the time the gloves stretched to fit Cathleen's hands, she had the horses fed, their coats gleaming and their hooves picked clean of debris. And rather than put them back in their stalls, she led them out to the small paddock near the barn. They would graze a little there while she mucked out the stalls.

While she worked Cathleen let her mind clear itself. She did not think of her mother or anything else for that matter, simply the task at hand. The idea of shoveling horse manure for reflective thought made her laugh a little to herself and she jumped when an unexpected voice said from behind her, "You need some help with that?"

She turned to find Ian standing in the doorway. She stuck her pitchfork into the pile of muck that she had loaded into a wheelbarrow and looked back at her work. "No," she sighed, resting her hands on her hips, "I think I'm done here."

Her father glanced at his watch. "Then let's get something to eat, those friends of your mother probably have poor Jeff and Scotty about hen pecked to death by now."

* * *

At the house,one of her mother's Euchre Club friends set a plate in front of her and she began to eat, forcing herself to chew each bite, barely tasting the food. She took a sip of her iced tea to wash it down and looked across the table at Scotty who was doing the same. He made a half choking sound, gagged and spit the tea back into the glass.

Pulling a face he asked, "What is _that_?"

Jeff sat down at the table laughing. "It's iced tea, dude," he answered and then looked to Cathleen adding, "You'd think a Scotsman would know tea when he tasted it."

"That's not tea," Scotty retorted, "That's….that's awful."

Jeff ignored Scotty and continued with his sister. "Dad said he doesn't think he can go make the funeral arrangements. Will you go with me? I don't want to mess anything up."

She knew by his tone and expression that he really meant, "I'll drive you so you can make the arrangements." But she agreed and got up to go change her clothes.

Cathleen and Jeff drove into town, and when they walked into the funeral home, they were greeted by a funeral director named Skip Gardner, a classmate of her mother. Her brother shook Skip's hand and gave Cathleen a look that said, _"Skip?"_

Mr. Gardner led them into a small consultation office and they began discussing the arrangements for her mother's services, some of the laws and regulations, costs and what they would need to do to apply for copies of her death certificate. They gave permission to hire a florist (even though there was only one in town), a police escort for the procession and decided on supplying their own music rather than hire an organist. Her mother never liked organ music at funerals and Jeff volunteered to upload some music from home onto a computer tape that would be played during the visitation. Then they chose a casket.

On a monitor, Skip showed them pictures of different caskets to choose from, describing features and costs as they went through them.

"This one is very popular and priced very modestly," he said pointing to a powder blue casket.

"I don't like that color," Cathleen told him, ready to move on to the next style.

"If you don't like the blue," Skip continued, flipping to the different photo of the same model, "it also comes in chocolate brown with cream crepe lining."

Cathleen and Jeff studied the picture for a moment and Jeff said absently, "Mom likes chocolate."

They looked at each other and began laughing at the comment and Cathleen told Skip, "We'll take the _chocolate._"

"That's a good choice. By law I have to also let you know, the seal on this model as well as the vault have a ten year warranty."

Together they tied up the remaining loose strings and shook Skip's hand. Cathleen promised she would have someone drop off the music and clothing for her mother and they left for home.

One the way to the car Jeff asked his sister, "I'd like to know who the hell is gonna dig her up in ten years to make sure the seal held?"

Cathleen ignored the question and worked up the nerve to approach the subject she knew was sure to start an argument. She got into the car, buckled her seat belt and turned to her brother.

"Dad wants one of us to stay and help him for awhile."

Jeff glanced at her and called her bluff. "Dad wants _you_ to stay for awhile."

Cathleen sighed heavily as her brother pulled out into traffic. "I understand that," she finally said, "but I will have to return to Starfleet sooner or later and I was hoping you'd help out."

Her brother took her suggestion as an attack on his loyalty to his family as he always did.

"I can't just pack up and move back to Ohio, Cath. I mean, I have a job too. One that's important to me. And I don't think Joyce and the kids would appreciate having to move back here. I have to think about them too ya know."

He would be of no help, she realized. He was worried about his wife and kids. The wife and kids that hadn't bothered to come with him. How like him to once again put himself first in a time when their father needed them both. And for the first time she truly wondered how she and her brother came from the same parents. She had not been raised that way and neither had he but rather than fight with him, she answered quietly, "Yeah, I know. Forget about it."

The next two days were full of chaos. Friends and family continued to drop by to pay their respects and Cathleen did her best to keep some order for her father's sake. She barely spoke to her brother and during the visitation she stayed close to her father and Scotty.

At one point, she sat comfortably in a chair next to her cousin. She had not seen Cory in ages and although the circumstances that brought them together that evening were doleful, she was glad to see him. They chatted about the changes in town, gossiped about common friends and reminisced about the good times.

For a moment she felt distracted and tried to focuse on his face in an attempt to pay attention to what he was saying to her. He had blue eyes just like her mother's.

In the next instant she suddenly felt drained, the blood rushed in her ears and the room began to spin. Just as she felt as though she would black out, two big hands took her by the arms and picked her up. She heard Scotty's voice say something about it being time for her to leave and she fought hard not to pass out as he quickly ushered her out and drove her home.

The next day, a simple, yet very nice funeral service was given and when it was over, she left her mother for the final time at the cemetery with generations of Mears that had gone before were buried.

Scotty stood next to her as she removed a rose from a floral spray and a ribbon that had the word "Mother" printed on it. She looked at him and when she started to cry, he reached out and gently wiped the tears with his thumbs.

"It's alright, lass," he said quietly.

His words aggravated her and she lashed out, pushing him away. "It's _not_ alright. It will _never be_ alright."

Scotty let her frustration roll and he told her something she would never forget.

"It may not seem like it right now, but it will be alright. In a few weeks or maybe a few months, ye'll realize that. Things may not ever be the same, but they will be good again and ye'll know that everything is alright. Ye'll see."

"I don't think I'm going back to the ship," she told him flatly.

Scotty gave a slow, confused shake of his head. "What do ye mean ye're not going back. Ye have to go back."

"I need to be here with my father. He needs me to stay. I can get a hardship discharge."

"Ye'll have about two months bereavement leave. Just promise me ye won't make any permanent decisions until then."

But what he didn't know was that she already had. And as much as it pained her, she knew that once he left, odds were she would never see him again. That train was crashing and she wasn't sure they would survive being apart. But she what she thought she was certain of was that this was the place she needed to be right now, even if it meant letting Scotty go.

They held hands but said nothing more as they walked back to the car. She sat in the back seat with him and her father rode in the front while Jeff drove.

Driving through town her father spoke. "This used to be our old neighborhood when we were first married…..you're mother and I. There used to be a pizzeria there and we were so broke we thought it was great when we had the extra money to stop and get a pizza to take home on Friday nights……We didn't have the money to go out, ya see, and we made a date of it…...When I first met your mother, she was so young, only 15 I think…. or maybe she just turned 16. But she was so pretty, she reminded me of a little bird……"

Cathleen sat back in her seat and listened, watching the scenery change as they drove by. She had heard this story a million times before growing up. It was a story that was always told by her mother with her father interjecting here and there. But this was the first time she actually heard it completely from his point of view. From their first date, till their wedding, to their first house, he retold it all, and she listened.


	20. Epilogue

Until the day The Enterprise rescued the thieving crew of the pirated Aurora, Scotty had all but forgotten about Cathleen Mears. He had moved on, or at least he thought he did, until he saw her on the transporter pad that day. At first he wasn't sure it was Cathleen. But as his eyes scanned the rescued crew, they kept comming back to an auburn haired woman in the back. He stepped up on the platform and noticed her eyes, and although he didn't say anything to give his suspicions away, he knew it was her. Her dark hair was much longer and her figure was rounder but her eyes were exactly as he remembered. And they were looking right at him; as if she had just seen him the day before.

In truth, he hadn't seen hide nor hair of his one time lover for almost two Earth years. He didn't know what to say or if he should say anything. And he was relieved when Captain Kirk and Commander Spock entered the Transporter room after the group protested at the suggestion that they assemble in the Conference room. If the captain or Spock recognized her, they didn't let on. And the spitefulness in Scotty, the part of him that wanted to lash out; wanted to hurt Cathleen as much as she had hurt him, wouldn't let him either.

The last time he actaully saw her was the day she left him at Spaceport after her mother died.

He thought at the time that she would use up her bereavement leave and come back to finish her enlistment. He felt the sting of shame when he thought of the last time he kissed her, touched her. There was something missing in the way she felt when she hugged him goodbye. Scotty decided he did not want to know why he should think such a thing. He had wrapped his arms around her tightly and decided to lose himself in the way she felt against him. If it were truly the last time she was to be in his arms, he did not want to ruin it by worrying too much.

But one day he was shocked to find her paddwork for a hardship discharge lying on his desk. He tried to contact her thinking maybe he could get her to change her mind. But his calls and sub-space messages went unanswered. Then, one day, he gave up. As much as he wanted to keep her, he signed the paddwork and let her go.

Scotty sat at his desk and thought about everything that happened the year he was with her and everything that had happened since, until he heard a ruckus coming from the engine room. He rose from his seat and stepped into the Engine room to find out who was causing all the trouble. It was Cathleen, and she was trying to gain more followers by converting his crew.

"They're not interested in Sevrin's codswallop, lass," Scotty boomed, ready for confrontation.

She turned to him looking more beautiful than she had a right to and smiled as he approched her telling her flat out, "Unlike some, they know where their loyalty lies."

"Dr. Sevrin is a brilliant man. Come with us, Scotty. You'll see." Cathleen reached out to take his hand and Scotty almost allowed it. Instead, he shied away and pretended to check some settings on a console.

"Dr. Sevrin is a lunatic, lass. And ye'll be lucky if he doesn't get ye all killed," he said glancing over his shoulder. She smiled but her eyes were almost pleading.

_Damn her eyes, _he thought.

"We could start over, you and me," she suggested softly. He turned to her and glared at his gawking crew. At the unspoken command they quickly stopped staring and made themselves look busy.

"There is no starting over Cathleen," he explained. "There is no you and me. Ye made sure of that when ye applied for yer discharge without even giving me a second thought."

"Is that what you think? That I never gave you a second thought? " she asked, touching his hand. He let her touch him this time but cringed inside at the way it made him feel as she continued. "With everything that's happened in the last two years, you're my only regret."

She actually had the nerve to look shocked and hurt. This was worse than he imagined because sadly, he knew that she was speaking the truth. He ached to smooth that look from her face, to take her back and forget how she hurt him. He felt so torn inside he was surprised he was not bleeding all over the floor. His stomache turned and a tightness in his chest made him feel as though his heart were literally breaking.

He glanced at his crew again and although the tense uncomfortable looks on their faces helped him subdue his pain, he knew it would be a short respite.

Scotty tore his hand away from her and said, "We all have to live with a few regrets, Cathleen. Now get out of my engine room."

She stared at him wide-eyed for a moment, as if she'd never heard anything as vicious as what he'd just said. But she left and he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He stepped over to the comm. "Engineering to Bridge."

"_Yes, Scotty, what is it?" _Kirk answered.

"Captain," he said. "I just had to give one of those barefooted what do you call 'ems the boot out of here. She came in bold as brass, tried to incite my crew to disaffect."

"_Thank you, Scotty."_


End file.
